My duty to make Rishad Hossain mentally stronger – Mushtaq Ahmed

Bangladesh spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed has said the team management is working on Rishad Hossain's action to help him deliver consistent overs rather than just impactful deliveries.

The former leg-spinner also felt that missing the third ODI against New Zealand could turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the youngster, adding that such phases often help players grow mentally stronger.

Rishad became a talking point after being left out of the third ODI, with many questioning his limited usage in the preceding games. He had earlier established himself as Bangladesh's lead spinner during the home series against West Indies in October, where he claimed 12 wickets, including a career-best 6 for 35.

Following that, he featured in the Big Bash League for Hobart Hurricanes, picking up 15 wickets in 11 matches, the joint-highest tally for a spinner in the tournament. However, since returning, his role has been inconsistent. He bowled just two overs in the first ODI against Pakistan and did not complete his full quota in the following matches. A similar pattern continued against New Zealand, where he delivered only 15 overs across the first two games before being benched.

Mushtaq stressed that such phases are part of a young cricketer's journey and highlighted the importance of mental strength at the highest level.

"I think this (sitting out) is a part of his progress. You know, sometimes when you sit out, what is your mindset? This is our duty as a coach to make his mind strong. International cricket is all about having a great temperament. It's a mind game rather than anything else. Because skill can bring you here, but here you have to survive with the mindset," Mushtaq told reporters ahead of the T20I series.

"You got to have a strong mindset to stay at international level and I think as a coach it is my duty to make him mentally tougher," he said.

"He was not dropped basically and he bowled very well in last ODI, but you know like we just want to get stronger in other spinners also and all the spinners have some games," he said.

"So yes, this is our duty to make sure, you know like when people are not playing, they mentally should be very positive," he said, adding that Rishad needs to further develop his googly.

"His googly has to improve a bit more like the angle of the googly – which side you have to bowl to right-handers whether it is close to the stump, wide of the stump. So using the crease with the basic strong, like repeatable action, I always use that phrase. I think that's very important for a leg spinner because you guys know leg spin can be expensive," he said.

"So we want to work on his action so he can be a very perfect, he can bowl good overs rather than good balls," he said.

Mushtaq also spoke about Mehidy Hasan, emphasising the need for greater variation in his bowling, especially given that he is not a mystery spinner and is expected to do more than just contain runs.

"I mean he (Mehidy) got wickets in middle overs. Last game he got very vital wicket, Latham. He's a good player. He can take other players also with him. So that ball over spun," said Mushtaq.

"You know like his role is not only containing runs and because he's not a mystery spinner one thing he can do, he can develop his variation which is he's been working, credit goes to him obviously," he said.

"But you know like my point of view as a spin bowling coach, you got to have a variation. You got to change your variation pace especially with the Western cricketers, you know Western batsmen. They have very fast hands. So when they have a fast hand you have to vary your pace as a spin bowler. So if you vary your pace you can deceive them. So that's why he got wicket Latham and obviously last wicket," he said.

"So he's been bowling well. So overall using a crease as I said, you know depth of the crease, angle of the crease. Cricket is all about angle game," he said.

"Sometimes you get people out with the field position, tactical moves. If you have that tactical moves how you can stop them scoring runs, what is their strength. If you can figure out during a match and have the strategy and execute your plan well, you have a more chance to win matches," he added.

Mushtaq added that the mood in the Bangladesh camp remains upbeat after their ODI series win, though he cautioned against complacency heading into the T20I leg.

"Winning the last series is always handy. You know, it's a happy dressing room. When you win things, a lot of things you don't even notice. But being coaches, you know, we always want to try to focus on things when you're winning, there is always one percent that you can improve your game. So I think last three ODI series we won. So it's good news for Bangladesh cricket team also," said Mushtaq, adding that the team is ready to experiment in the shorter format.

"And also coming for T20, there are a few youngsters as you said. I think it's a great platform for them to express themselves. And we also want at the same time to do the bench strength strong. So you'll see lots of variation happens like last game, you know, like on a crucial game even Tanvir played, Rishad didn't play. So when we go to the World Cup, the bench strength and all the other players have a lot of cricket matches under their belt, so they can be prepared to play for the national team," he added.