Mashrafe says Bangladesh's dressing room not a 'happy one'

Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza believes the environment of the dressing room in Bangladesh does not look good.

Mashrafe is preparing to return to the field with the ongoing Dhaka Premier League (DPL) after recovering from an injury. He practised in the Legends of Rupganj jersey at the academy ground in Mirpur on Thursday.

The pacer, who is sceptical of the dressing room environment said, "The most important thing is that the players are complaining about him (Russell Domingo). The first thing is to be happy in your dressing room. If it is, then it is good. I didn't think so (the dressing room is happy). That's why I said it with an open mind. Russell Domingo's level of success in Bangladesh cricket is not heavy. Even after the omission of Steve Rhodes, the scale of his success was heavy. If BCB is satisfied with him then it's very good. That is the decision of the board. "

"I don't know what he (Domingo) did. When the team succeeds, of course, it is his achievement. This is a very normal issue. I did not work with him. I played only three matches under him, so the chances of talking were little. However, he has to take responsibility for all the matches we have lost. We lost a lot of matches here (in Mirpur) which were not meant to be lost. What we won in New Zealand was not what we were supposed to win," Mashrafe said about Domingo.

"All in all let's see how far we can go ahead. I personally think that the scale of failure in Domingo's tenure is heavier. Because the Bangladesh team are not in a position now that you can experiment with the team. Now the fans of Bangladesh want the team to win. You people and the cricket board wants success. This is not the place for new coaches to come and experiment. Now is the time for Bangladesh cricket to perform. In ODI cricket, Bangladesh have been performing well for 6-7 years. So, the ODI team is at a level but the situation is not the same in other formats." 

Although the past figures are not great, Mashrafe is optimistic, "We've lost a lot of matches at home, the last T20 World Cup, the Test match against Afghanistan - there is a lot more. I think his (Domingo's) performance so far is more on the downside. Let's see if we can do something extraordinary in South Africa. As a South African, he knows the culture and the environment. He has a good idea about the wickets. Hopefully, he will play a big role. It would be great if we could do that." 

Bangladesh will play World Cups (T20 and ODI) in 2022 and 2023. 

Asked whether the coach should be changed in the run-up to two World Cups in a row, Mashrafe said, "It is a decision of the BCB. I think that's why I'm saying, so far the scale of his failure is huge."    

Russell Domingo, the head coach of the Bangladesh team, gave an interview to the BCB on August 7, 2019. The South African came to Bangladesh to give an interview as the coach of BCB's High-Performance Unit (HP). Overwhelmed by his profile, the BCB offered him the job of coaching the national team. The salary is estimated at US$ 15,000 (BDT 12.75 lakh) per month. Now his salary is about US$ 25000.

Under Domingo's supervision, Bangladesh so far played 72 matches across three formats, winning 34 and losing 37 matches, while one Test was drawn. In Tests, Bangladesh won three out of 14 under his guidance while there were 13 wins in 18 ODIs and 18 wins in 40 T20Is.