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Bangladesh v South Africa: 5 key talking points. BAN vs SA 5 key talking points from their CWC 2019 match.

Bangladesh have kicked off their World Cup 2019 campaign in style, beating South Africa by 21 runs. This win has certainly been a statement from the Tigers, setting things up beautifully with the bat before an honest effort with the ball meant they had South Africa’s measure for most of the match.

While Bangladesh were good, South Africa were poor. There was reason to be optimistic after their first up effort against England, but their performance yesterday was insipid. They looked rattled against the Bangladesh batting onslaught. Faf du Plessis, usually calm and measured, looked flustered. Catches were dropped and misfields leaked runs. This performance is cause for disappointment for Proteas fans, with PoppingCreaseSA, who was at the match, delivering a passionate message after the game.

Bangladesh’s fine win has delivered some key talking points as the World Cup starts to heat up just that little bit.

Also read: A look into Pakistan’s embarrassing performance first up

1. Shock? What shock?

Fox Sports Australia’s social media coverage of late has been quite poor. Just about anything they post is met with comments of rebuttal and the request to review what the ‘work experience kid’ is posting.

The latest was their ‘report’ of Bangladesh’s win, labeling it as a ‘shock’. Sure, South Africa were favourites in this game, but writers PAID to report on the game should know a little better. Bangladesh are a good side, led by a fantastic captain in Mashrafe Mortaza, with five players boasting over 175 games of ODI experience.

Bangladesh are no longer minnows. No Bangladesh win is ever a ‘shock’ anymore. Come on guys, you can do better than this.

2. Shakib and Mushfiqur – two gems

Bangladesh have improved significantly as a team in the last decade. However, there have been plenty of times where they have looked good, only to throw it away. Yesterday’s batting performance was the near perfect one, with Soumya Sarkar delivering a rapid start which was built on beautifully by Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim, who put on a Bangladesh World Cup record 142-run stand. With Mahmudullah and Mossadek Hossain finishing things off nicely, teams better beware of Bangladesh.

Special mentions go to Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim. These two, along with Tamim Iqbal, are lessons for a team like Sri Lanka to look at. Bangladesh introduced these players as teenagers back in 2005-2007, looking to build the team around these talents. Over a decade later, Shakib Al Hasan has become the quickest to achieve the 5,000 runs/250 wickets double in ODIs, whilst remaining a regular member in the top three all-rounders rankings since 2009. Mushfiqur Rahim, since the 2015 World Cup, has averaged 46 as a keeper-batsman, behind only Kumar Sangakkara and Shai Hope (min. 2,000 runs).

Shakib and Mushfiqur’s outstanding partnership yesterday was another chapter in a terrific little story they have written for the people of Bangladesh.

3. Jonty Rhodes is right… it’s time to panic!

One of South Africa’s best ever fielders Jonty Rhodes sensed the worst as Shakib and Mushfiqur were scoring runs at will.

In a World Cup where knockout places are a premium, South Africa’s performance yesterday was nothing short of an abomination. Rhodes saw the body language of the South Africans, including Faf du Plessis, and saw a side getting picked apart. South Africa’s bowling was meant to be their strength, but their lack of calmness and tactical nous in this game was mighty costly. In the end, he nailed it with a direct hit.

After saying South Africa shouldn’t panic after the first game, they are in real trouble now with India on the horizon on Wednesday. Their batsmen need to take responsibility too, projecting some of the meekness on display in the field. Each of the top six crossed 20, only for Faf du Plessis to reach a score of 50+.

It shows their minds are not quite right when Faf du Plessis says “even Bangladesh” can beat what they’re producing.

4. Is Mustafizur Rahman discovering his form of old?

When Mustafizur Rahman burst onto the scene after the 2015 World Cup, Bangladesh believed they had unearthed what was surely to be their best ever seamer. He took five wickets in each of his first two ODIs and took South Africa apart on Test debut. The ‘Fizz’ then went onto the IPL, and produced memorable moments such as this yorker to Andre Russell. While his cutter was a key feature, it was his pace, hovering around 140km/h, that made him very difficult to handle.

However, shoulder surgery in 2016 threw a spanner in the works. He wasn’t the same on his return, instead hovering around 125km/h and undercutting the ball on release with his shoulder in mind. This meant he couldn’t swing the ball, and his slower ball was not as effective as the change in pace wasn’t as profound.

On the eve of the World Cup, though, Mashrafe Mortaza was pleased to see Mustafizur Rahman get his pace back up. Yesterday, he was consistently bowling around the 140km/h mark, and consistently threatened a lot more than the Proteas’ bowlers did. His seam position out of the hand looked a lot better, too. While he was a little expensive, his three wickets certainly helped. There is no doubt that a fit ‘Fizz’ gives Bangladesh another dimension.

5. Where the hell are the yorkers?

Team management, captains and death bowlers complicate things a little too much these days. ‘Phenomenons’ such as knuckle balls, slower ball bouncers, cutters and hard lengths have replaced the yorkers. Teams are too obsessed with too much variety in the death overs, where full, straight yorkers are the way to go. After all, they are very difficult to hit for boundaries.

Yesterday, Bangladesh struck 54 off their final four overs, which proved a key period in the game. South Africa’s bowling in this period was putrid, offering fruit with cream on top to the Bangladeshi batsmen, who gleefully accepted. If teams are to cope in the death overs at this World Cup, then ensuring batsmen can’t get under the ball helps. If bowlers can’t execute, then clear their minds and have them work on executing yorkers in training.

With seemingly an endless array of options, bowlers are confused. It’s time to strip it back and keep it simple.

So, a magnificent win for Bangladesh, who have now won three of their past four ICC World Cup openers. South Africa are now 0-2, and face one of the tournament favourites India, who are itching to get their tournament underway.

Will the return of Dale Steyn be enough to turn South Africa’s fortunes around? We shall see.

Enjoyed this article? View more of the recent “key talking points” articles from this World Cup!

Pakistan vs West Indies: Embarrassing Pakistan performance

New Zealand v Sri Lanka: Goes from bad to worse for SL

Australia v Afghanistan: Plenty to like about Afghanistan + keep booing Smith and Warner!

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