Bangladesh began their campaign brightly with a victory over Pakistan but have since slipped outside the top four after defeats to England and New Zealand. The back-to-back setbacks have put pressure on their upcoming fixtures, especially with little turnaround time before facing a resurgent South African side.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Despite the team\u2019s struggles, Rabeya Khan has been one of the few shining lights in Bangladesh\u2019s recent outings. The 19-year-old all-rounder impressed again in their 100-run defeat to New Zealand, returning figures of 3\/30 off 10 overs and contributing 25 off 39 balls with the bat. Yet, she didn\u2019t shy away from acknowledging where things went wrong.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cIf the top-order doesn\u2019t score runs, whatever the lower order does becomes useless,\u201d Rabeya told the media after the match. \u201cIt\u2019s really tough for us that way ... our batting has collapsed (in the last two games).\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Reflecting on the previous loss to England, Rabeya explained that their lower order had tried to stabilize the innings after another early collapse.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cIn the last match, our batters lost wickets very early, and there were still lots of overs left. So Fahima Khatun and I decided we would stay at the crease and take singles to keep the scoreboard moving. While we were batting, we focused on taking as many singles as possible so we could build runs steadily and aim for a bigger total in the last 5\u201310 overs,\u201d she said. \u201cBut since we lost many wickets early, we couldn\u2019t manage a big score.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Rabeya dismissed any suggestion that the pitch conditions were to blame for the defeats.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThe wicket was the same (for both teams), we just couldn\u2019t play well. That\u2019s the main thing,\u201d she admitted. \u201cSo ... the main thing is batting \u2014 batting collapsed. Next time we will concentrate on the batting unit, and bowling and fielding just continue (how they have performed).\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The young spinner also came to the defense of captain Nigar Sultana Joty, who has struggled for form so far, averaging just nine runs in the tournament.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201c(She) was very confident during practice, and she\u2019s usually confident in matches too,\u201d Rabeya said. \u201cBut sometimes, the runs just don\u2019t come off the bat ... that\u2019s normal. She\u2019s trying hard; there\u2019s no lack of effort from her side.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The young spinner also came to the defense of captain Nigar Sultana Joty, who has struggled for form so far, averaging just nine runs in the tournament.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cNext time,\u201d Rabeya concluded, \u201cwe will concentrate on the batting.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n