& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Lions floor miserable Tigers

BlSHWAJIT ROY from Melbourne
The Tigers turned up at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) for the first time to make a statement against the Lankan Lions yesterday. The mood in the
Bangladesh camp ahead of the World Cup fixture was that it could be a stage where the Tigers would look to prey on the Lions.
But after a nearly eight-hour bout it was the Tigers who were immediately taken to the treatment table with serious injuries after being subjected to severe assault from two Lions -Tillakaratne Dilshan (161) and Kumar Sangakkara (105). The left-right combination produced an imperious 210 runs for the unbroken second wicket in an imposing Sri Lanka total of332 for 1.
Ona day when World Cup debutants Afghanistan created small piece of history by defeating fellow Associate members Scotland by one wicket in a thriller, nothing went right for
the Tigers. A 92-run defeat after a win and a draw suggested that Bangladesh have hardly made an impression as an up and coming side despite scoring 240 before being all out with three overs to spare.
The crux of Bangladesh's problem was not that they failed to contain the Lankans from scoring a massive total, which was a case in the other two games played here before. And even the margin of defeat can be called decent if compared to that of England's against Australia and South Africa's against India.
It was the athleticism, or the lack of it, that has once again nakedly exposed a Bangladesh side who not only dropped three catches, but showed their ineptness in ground fielding. A statistic on display during the game showed that Bangladesh are the second worst fielding side
in the tournament after Pakistan.
After Anamul Haque dropped Lahiru Thirimanne in the slips in the very first over, a Sri Lankan journalist jokingly quipped that Bangladesh actually wanted to avoid Sangakkara.
That might be an understatement of the fact that both Anamul and Mahmudullah, who juggled before taking tumbling catches against Afghanistan the other day, have not learnt the art of taking those sharp slip catches.
Thirimanne needed another reprieve this time from wicketkeeper Mushfiqur, who missed a simple stumping chance, on his way to 52.
One can still live with dropping Thirimanne but you can't drop a master batsman like Sangakkara, who slashed straight to point while
on 60. But Mominul Haque dropped that sitter.
The Lankans also dropped a couple of catches but they showed a lot of energy on the field. Fielding is the area an average team look at to possibly make up for even an ordinary bowling attack. Unfortunately, Bangladesh have never excelled in that important area.
And the way the Tigers fielded raised questions about what kind of special drills they did have at home before the World Cup under the guidance of a support staff dominated by the Lankans.
It was a special moment for Sangakkara when he reached his 22nd ODI hundred in the final over of his 400th ODI. But he must also thank Taskin Ahmed, who failed to hold a tough return catch when the batsman was on 23.
On a pitch that hardly offered anything to the
bowlers, the sloppy fielding lifted any pressure from Dilshan and Sangakkara, who made merry with the bowlers save Mashrafe Bin Mortaza who was immaculate with his line and length. Young paceman Taskin Ahmed learned the difficulty of bowling to top-class batsmen the hardest way, conceding 82 runs in his 10 overs.
Bangladesh's chase of the mammoth total never really took off after Lasith Malinga knocked off Tamim Iqbal's off stump with the second ball of the innings. Young left-hander Soumya Sarker entertained the crowd briefly and then there was a partnership between Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur, followed by an enterprising half-century from Sabbir Rahman. But those performances were only meant to reduce the margin of defeat.