Tigers looking to pounce on wounded Windies

Paul MITCHELL

Bangladesh will be looking to add to the misfortunes of the West Indies as they begin a two-Test series in the Caribbean at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex on Thursday.

The West Indies are coming off a tense four-match One-day International series loss to India, and are still unsettled with their attack weakened by the absence of the injured Fidel Edwards. Bangladesh have fond memories of their last trip to the Caribbean five years ago, when they ran the home team so close that it prompted the salacious comment from then Windies captain Brian Lara that if his side could not beat Bangladesh in the Test series, he would immediately resign.

New Tigers captain Mashrafe Mortaza will again be trying to accomplish what his predecessors have not been able to do - make Bangladesh a tougher, more resilient opponent, particularly away from home.

"The first thing I said after becoming the captain is that we have a problem with our confidence level," said Mortaza.

"It's not that we can't play at the international level, we have played Test matches for five days in the past and beaten international teams. He added: "There is however, no use dwelling on the past and I have spoken to the boys to believe in themselves and keep their confidence high throughout the tour.

"If we start playing well from the first match we will go into the first Test match with a good momentum. As the captain I want all of them to give 100 per cent, win or loss comes secondary to it."

The first match of this Caribbean tour against West Indies-A was not a huge success, or even came close to what Mortaza had in mind.

But the Tigers managed to rebound from another slipshod batting performance in the first innings to bat a little more steadily in the second, and the bowling put the second string West Indies side under early pressure before they allowed the A-Team a lead of 53.

Bangladesh can take some confidence from this, and though Chris Gayle and company will be a little bit more formidable than the A-Team in the Tests, the Tigers can enter the series with a little more peace of mind. Not so West Indies, after they were stung by the 1-2 loss of the ODI series to India, and would hate to slip on the cliched banana peel that are the Bangladeshis.

"We are looking forward to Bangladesh right now," said Gayle following the final ODI against India which was abandoned because of rain. "We need to go back to the drawing board ahead of that series."

The West Indies captain will be under the microscope again, following his ill-advised comments about quitting Test cricket and the post during the recent two-Test series in England.

It set off a maelstrom of debate about the future of the game, and has moved administrators around the world to insist that Test matches must remain at the pinnacle in the face of the threat it faces from the Twenty20 version.

To be taken seriously, Gayle and his side will have to overcome the Bangladesh challenge - and in a purposeful way - not only to appease West Indies fans, but so they can repair the tattered image of West Indies cricket with the real and present danger of a two-tiered system in Tests now looming.

Arnos Vale's only Test 12 years ago between West Indies and Sri Lanka ended in a tense draw with the visitors 36 runs short of a victory target of 269.

The venue however, has been a regular stop in the Caribbean for ODIs and has staged 17 in which the pitch has often been low and slow, and this should be to the liking of the Bangladeshis.

It's the annual hurricane season in the Caribbean, when torrential rain is never too far away, and it should be no big surprise if the match is affected by the weather.

KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent, Wednesday (AFP)