Mirpur: Bangladesh coach Phil Simmons has confirmed that Liton Das will drop the No. 5 batting order for the ODI series against Pakistan as part of a significant shake-up in Bangladesh’s middle order.
The former West Indies coach, who took charge of the Tigers last year, was forced to reshuffle his batting line-up following the absence of veteran campaigners Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah, who have been at the position for years.
Lytton, who returned to the ODI fold after a nine-month hiatus, endured a poor run of form as he failed to reach double figures in his last eight innings since December 2023.
Despite his struggles at the top, Simmons believes that the wicketkeeper-batsman’s ability against spin makes him a better fit for the middle-order role.
“First of all, it’s very difficult to keep up to 50 overs and then to come in and open the batting,” explained Simmons. “He’s one of our best spin bowlers. The middle order is one of our Achilles’ heels. So, he comes in there with his experience and his ability, hopefully we can get what we need there.”
The 30-year-old last played at No.5 during the 2019 World Cup, where he scored an unbeaten 94 against the West Indies at Taunton.
However, for most of his ODI career, he has batted in the top four positions. Simmons revealed that the veteran batter needed some confidence to embrace the new role.
“He is comfortable batting anywhere,” the coach said. “I think he’s very relaxed in his game and he sees it as an opportunity to do what the team needs. We didn’t have to convince Lytton for anything. All we asked was, ‘This is what the team needs,’ and he was happy to do it.”
While Jaker Ali and Nurul Hasan have been dropped from the Bangladesh team, Mahitul Islam Ancon, who batted at number 5 during the West Indies series last October, has been retained.
Ankhan scored 69 runs in three matches as he tried to establish himself in the team.
The Tigers return to international cricket after a three-month hiatus, having missed the T20 World Cup amid political turmoil engulfing the nation.
Although the domestic Bangladesh Cricket League helped them refocus, Simmons admitted his disappointment at missing out on the tournament.
“I think we’re at that point now and we’re going through it. It’s been really painful for the guys,” Simmons said.
“I’ve been talking to them. It’s been very painful. But I think we’re getting on the stage, I think the BCL has helped with that little tournament. So we’ve started playing 50-over cricket and thinking about these three matches here. So, I think we’re getting there.”
Ahead of the three-match series starting on March 11, Simmons has urged his side to replicate the aggressive batting display they produced when they amassed 296 runs in the third ODI against the West Indies last October.
“We finished well against the West Indies and we don’t want to back down from there,” he said.
“Remember, wickets are much better than wickets in that series, so the important thing is to see the improvement, ie the way we batted in the last game,” he concluded.