Phil Simmons made no attempt to hide his disappointment following Bangladesh's catastrophic batting collapse in the warm-up match. The head coach pointed fingers directly at the manner of the batters' dismissals. However, he remains hopeful that the batters will work through their errors and prepare themselves in time for the Test match.
Bangladesh suffered an innings-and-38-run defeat in the three-day warm-up game against the Cricket Australia XI, getting bundled out for a paltry 54 runs in their second innings.
The Cricket Australia XI featured only two Test players and was largely composed of unheralded names. Apart from Corey Rocchiccioli, most bowlers in their lineup rarely get consistent opportunities in state cricket. In fact, Campbell Thomson—who tore through Bangladesh with figures of 8 for 25—had played just a single first-class match prior to this! Such a defeat against that opposition sends a serious warning sign ahead of the Test series.
Simmons had been pleased with the team's preparation during their three-day training stint upon arriving in Darwin. But he expressed stark disappointment with their performance in the warm-up clash.
“The three days we had, we got some really good work done. In the practice game, we let ourselves down with the bat. If you look at the ways we got out, it wasn’t pretty.”
However, the coach refuses to treat this match as the end of the line. In a video message released by the BCB, he reiterated his faith in the squad:
“We have three days to work on what needs to be done properly for the Test match. I trust the boys; they will put in the work over the next three days to get to where we want to be for the Test match. It’s a disappointing game, but we are looking forward to the Test match.”
There are just four days left before the Test match begins, with Bangladesh having three remaining practice sessions on their schedule. The first Test kicks off in Darwin this coming Thursday.
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