Bangladesh must rethink home Test formula after spin struggles

Bangladesh's eight-wicket defeat to West Indies in the first of the two-Test series in Mirpur on Saturday once again exposed the batters' inability to handle spin, raising a pertinent question: what should the Tigers' approach to home conditions be?

"Our biggest problem is our batters. We must pay attention to which wickets our batters feel comfortable playing on," former national captain Akram Khan said bluntly.

"Focusing solely on what to do to win shouldn't be the approach right now, because Bangladeshi batters are unable to score consistently on any wicket," Akram added.

Bangladesh enjoyed home success between 2014 and 2018 on spin-friendly pitches, recording memorable Test victories against England and Australia. However, Akram believes reverting to that formula is no longer working because the team lacks both capable batters and quality spinners.

"In the past, we always prepared spinning wickets at home because we had two advantages: first, our batters could score runs on those wickets, which they cannot do now. Second, we had top-quality spinners like Shakib, and we currently lack spinners of that calibre. That is why the issue stands out much more now," Akram said.

Before the Mirpur Test, Bangladesh had won five consecutive home Tests since April 2025, all on sporting surfaces where their batters made significant contributions. Between December 2023 and April 2025, however, they lost six consecutive Tests, repeatedly struggling against spin-friendly conditions.

The defeat has all but ended their prospects of qualifying for next year's ICC World Test Championship final at The Oval. Bangladesh travel to Sylhet today for the second Test, starting on November 5, leaving team management little time to decide their approach.