Dipu Roy Chowdhury, Bangladesh Women’s Under-19 team’s head coach, feels that their performance in the ICC Women’s Under-19 World Cup indicates that they have a strong pipeline to replace the seniors in the future.
The inclusion of four cricketers from the Under-19 squad in the national team for the upcoming ICC Women’s World T20 validates the observation.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board included uncapped batter Shorna Akhter, Disha Biswas, Marufa Akter and Dilara Akter though the latter was replaced by Fargana Haque in the 15-member squad after she sustained an injury on her ankle.
Shorna and Marufa were the standout performers for the tourists in the tournament while players like hard hitting opener Afia Humaira, Anam Prottasha alongside Disha, Rabeya Khan and Dilara helped them end the tournament with their head held high.
Bangladesh, who defeated India and South Africa in the practice game ahead of the tournament, turned out to be serious contenders for the championship by the end of the group phase as they won all three Group A matches – against Australia, Sri Lanka and USA respectively- to enter into the Super Six phase with a maximum of six points. However, their loss to hosts South Africa in the Super Six Round paid a heavy price as they were eliminated after winning against UAE in their last match. However, with some older players nearing the end of their careers, their futures look bright, so their performances are certainly drawing attention.
“Everyone has an age (Salma Khatun and others). It’s time for them to retire. Now I know there are players in the pipeline who can replace them when they’re not around. I hope,” Dipu told reporters after arriving in Dhaka on Friday.
“When it comes to power hits, I can say the same about Plottasha and Shona Akhtar, but they hit so well that you can’t understand it without looking at them. Four men in the national team. cricketer has been given a chance and it is a positive sign that a U19 cricketer named Laveya (Khan) is also on the bench,” he said. “There will be competition because without competition the level is not high. Everyone who is in the national team is pretty serious because they are not taken for granted. 60% of the team members will play in the next World Cup. I think they will, but they gave the impression that the pipeline in Bangladesh is strong,” he said.
Dipu added that he was impressed with Marfa and Shona’s tournament performances and hopes to join her senior squad regularly at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
“My personal observation is that Shauna Akhtar and Marfa Akhtar have started in the World Cup and will be big players in the future,” he concluded.