Litton on dismissal in third T20I: ‘I felt the scoop was the best option at that time’

When on song, there are a very few batters who look as elegant as Litton Das. But the classy right-hander has been in horrendous form of late and now it has become a real cause of concern for Bangladesh going into the T20 World Cup next month. 

Litton was recently dropped from the ODI side because of indifferent form but his place in the T20I side was hardly in doubt. He had vital contributions in Bangladesh's two recent crucial T20I wins - against New Zealand last year and against Sri Lanka this year - but the returns have started to diminish in this format as well.

But what has made one and all raise their eyebrows has been Litton's recent shot selections and mode of dismissals. In the second Test against Sri Lanka, Litton, not mindful of the situation, played an aerial shot first up and ended up losing his wicket. The shot was dubbed as "the worst shot in Test history" by many social media users.

On Tuesday, Litton's shot selection was even more surprising as he attempted a premeditated ramp shot three times in a row off Zimbabwe quick Blessing Muzarabani. On the first two occasions, he could not put bat on ball. He could connect in the third delivery but dragged the ball onto the stumps. 

Muzarabani vs Litton has become a positive match-up for Zimbabwe as the Bangladesh batter has already got out to him three times in four innings. Litton averages 5.33 and strikes at 72.7 against the tall pace bowler. 

Litton was dismissed by a peach bowled by Muzarabani in the first T20I and the match-up was probably in the back of his mind. In an interview after the match with official broadcaster T Sports, Litton said the felt the scoop was the "best option" for him at that time.

"At that time, I thought it [the scoop] was the best idea at that time for me. Look, it would have gone for a boundary if I had hit the ball a bit wider. It's part of the game. Sometimes you will get out playing good shots and sometimes you will get runs off bad ones. I am trying [to do well]. Let's see what happens," he said.

Litton mentioned that it has been difficult for the other top-order batters as well to negate the new ball. 

"Not only us but Zimbabwe are also struggling. Playing the new ball has been a challenge for everyone. You cannot just go and hit the ball straightaway. You have to bat in the way the wicket permits you to," he added.