Simmons confirms Litton Das’s demotion in batting order for Pakistan ODIs

Bangladesh Coach Phil Simmons has confirmed that Litton Das will drop down the order to bat at No 5 in the upcoming ODI series against Pakistan, as part of a significant shake-up of the team’s underperforming middle order.

The former West Indies coach, who took charge of the Tigers last year, has been forced to restructure his batting line-up following the absence of seasoned campaigners Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah, who had become fixtures in that position over the years.

Litton, who returns to the ODI fold after a nine-month hiatus, has endured a torrid run of form, failing to reach double figures in his last eight innings since December 2023.

Despite his struggles at the top, Simmons believes the wicketkeeper-batter’s proficiency against spin bowling makes him ideally suited to the middle-order role.

“First of all, it is very difficult to keep for 50 overs and then come and open the batting,” Simmons explained. “He is also one of our better players of spin bowling.

The middle order has been one of our Achilles heels. So, him going down there with his experience and his skills, hopefully we can get what we need there.”

The 30-year-old last occupied the No 5 slot during the 2019 World Cup, where he announced himself with an unbeaten 94 against West Indies in Taunton.

For the majority of his ODI career, however, he has batted in the top four. Simmons revealed that the veteran batter required little convincing to embrace the new role.

“He has been comfortable batting anywhere,” the coach said.

“I think he’s a lot more relaxed with his game and he sees it as an opportunity to do what the team needs of him.

We didn’t have to convince Litton for anything. All we asked was, ‘this is what the team needs’, and he was happy to do it.”

While Bangladesh have omitted Jaker Ali and Nurul Hasan from the squad, they have retained Mahidul Islam Ankon, who batted at No 5 during the West Indies series last October.

Ankon managed 69 runs across three matches without ever truly accelerating the scoring rate as he sought to establish himself in the side.

The Tigers return to international cricket after a three-month absence, having missed the T20 World Cup amid the political turmoil that engulfed the nation.

Simmons admitted the disappointment of missing that tournament still lingers among his players, though the domestic Bangladesh Cricket League has helped them refocus.

“I think we are at that stage now where we’re getting past that. It was very hurtful for the guys,” Simmons said.

“I’ve been talking to them. It was very, very hurtful. But I think we’re getting to the stage and I think the BCL helped with that little tournament.

So we started to get back to the frame of playing 50-over cricket and thinking about these three matches here. So, I think we’re getting there.”

Looking ahead to the three-match series, which commences on March 11, Simmons has urged his side to replicate the aggressive batting display they produced in the third ODI against West Indies last October, when they amassed 296 runs on a challenging surface.

“We finished well against West Indies and we don’t want to go backwards from there,” he stated.

“Mind you, the wickets look a lot better than they were for that series so the main thing is to look at progress, which is to bat the way we batted in that last game,” he concluded.