Indore: Bangladesh pacers are practising by dipping the ball in water to adapt to the dew conditions as part of their preparation for the day-night Test against India, spin all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz said on Monday.
Gearing up for their maiden Pink ball Test in Kolkata, both the Bangladesh and Indian team have been practising in the twilight zone and under lights at the Holkar Stadium, trying to simulate conditions that they are likely to encounter at the Eden Gardens. The entire Bangladesh team spent approximately three hours at the center wickets on Monday with head coach Russell Domingo giving catching drills to the players in the slip cordon and wicketkeeper Liton Das.
Mehidy said his team is looking to get as much practice as possible with the pink ball. “The pace bowlers will continue to bowl by dipping the ball on water in the coming days,” Mehidy told reporters. “I think we can adapt in the coming days. Maybe it will skid a little more when it is wet. Spinners can get to skid the ball. There’s also likely to be bounce and turn.”
Mehidy also had a long batting stint in one of the three nets. “I batted against the pink ball. It was moving and goes off rapidly after pitching. It goes off the bat quite quickly too. I think it swings more, and you can cut the ball too,” he said.
“We are still new to the pink ball. We haven’t got a lot of time with it but we are trying to cover as much as possible. There’ll be an initial struggle, but it will only get better as we go along. But it will be important to play for long, particularly after a batsman has adjusted to it.”
Mehidy said sighting the seam would be a challenge. “There’s not a lot of problems seeing it while catching and fielding too, but we have to be careful during the match. The seam can be sighted at times, but there are occasions when you can’t see it,” he said. India had beaten Bangladesh by an innings and 130 runs inside three days in the opening Test here.