Bangladesh's batting average against spinners, 19.85, was marginally better than West Indies', 18.25, in the Chattogram Test last week. It is similar to their batting average against spin at home in the last two years (27.92) and only slightly higher than the sides they have faced in this period (24.89). These numbers confirm that Bangladesh's gamble on spin-friendly pitches isn't entirely paying off, particularly for their batsmen who already struggle in overseas Tests and now haven't been up to the mark in their own conditions.
This new normal dates back to England's tour of Bangladesh in October 2016. Bangladesh lost a close game in Chattogram but in Dhaka, Shakib Al Hasan, Taijul Islam and Mehidy Hasan took 10 wickets in one session to level the series.
Ever since then, Bangladesh have preferred to welcome teams with turning pitches and have had great success in the process. They secured first-ever wins over England and Australia as well as a maiden win at home over West Indies last week. The standout bowlers have been Taijul, who has taken 50 wickets at 23.76, Mehidy, 46 at 23.54 and Shakib, 29 at 19.44.
Between September 2012 and August 2014, sides visiting Bangladesh used to average 49.68 against spin. In the next two year period, that came down to 35, and now it has sunk as low as 24.89. The hosts haven't fared any better, their numbers coming down from 48.60 to 39.33 to 27.92.
Privately, many of Bangladesh's batsmen have expressed their concern about what is turning out to be a long-term policy of employing spinning tracks. However, their disappointing returns in even slightly bowler-friendly conditions raises the question about whether they are even willing to apply themselves.
This could well be a consequence of playing a lot of limited-overs cricket, where the flatness of the pitches enables attacking strokeplay. Mahmudullah, for instance, has struggled in Tests but has always come good in shorter formats, particularly in crunch situations where he is often needed to bat at a high tempo. Soumya Sarkar is a more recent example of a batsman who has returned to form in ODIs, with his century against Zimbabwe, but endured twin failures against West Indies. While it is difficult to switch formats, several players around the world have retained their style of batting for all formats, with slight adjustments.
Bangladesh's Test captain Shakib wants his players to follow their instincts, going as far as to suggest they were free to attack from the get go.
"I always feel that a batsman shouldn't tinker with his style of batting," he said. "Unless it is very necessary for the side, I don't want a batsman to change his natural game plan. Virender Sehwag would hit a four off the first ball whether he was playing Tests, ODIs and T20s. It is an important approach. I would never want a batsman to defend or leave the first ball in a Test if they look to hit that ball for four in ODIs and T20s.
"He should have a similar mindset in every format, because it was this style of cricket that got him picked in the first place. I don't think he has to try anything different here. The team never asks for anything out-of-the-box or outside his nature from any batsman."
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite agreed. "Staying positive on this type of wicket is key. The bounce varied a lot in the first Test and even myself could have gone forward. The onus is on ourselves to trust our defence and attacking methods.
"I think the key is to be light in your feet, and treat each ball as it comes. I think we need to be clear in our mind, how we are going to do it. I definitely believe we can do it."
That's the application bit. Choosing the right ball to hit. Figuring out the shots that can lead to a wicket and avoiding them at all cost. Identifying the weak link in a bowling line-up and exploiting it, while taking extra care against the ones in form. These nuances are hardly necessary in one-day and T20 cricket with conditions so heavily in favour of the batsmen. But with Bangladesh choosing to play their home Tests on pitches that turn from day one, it is quite likely that their batsmen will always have to deal with tough days in the office. Even when they tour, especially outside the subcontinent, it's likely that oppositions will roll out seamer-friendly surfaces to gain the upper hand.
Something needs to be done, and perhaps the Mirpur Test on Friday will be a good starting point. Bangladesh are looking at a year-long stretch of matches abroad and their best chance of success lies in having a group of players who are confident about their game. Scoring big runs automatically solves that problem.