Liton Das: T20I break worked in my favour

Batter used his time away from the team to get his mind ready for long-form cricket

“Maybe they gave me a break to do well in Tests,” Liton said. “I think we got the main result from the break after the World Cup. As far as mental preparations are concerned, I played a first-class match after coming back from the World Cup. I had this Test series in mind. I didn’t expect too much from myself but I prepared adequately.

“Both (psychological and technical) aspects are important. The technical aspects are crucial. Even the smallest change in something like your stance can make a huge difference. It could change the style of play. It is nothing new. When I was in BKSP playing the NCL match, I spoke to Fahim sir and Montu sir about this particular problem. I worked with him (Prince) in Chittagong, when he felt I needed a small change. I won’t say that I did well because I changed my stance. I worked hard to come to this stage.

Liton said that Mushfiqur motivated him constantly during their partnership, especially when he was cramping all over his body late on the first day.

“I had plenty of small partnerships with (Mushfiqur) bhaiya. This one was a big partnership. It feels great when your partner helps you, motivates you. Together we overcame a tough situation.

“(Mushfiqur) bhaiya kept telling me to stick around, especially when I was cramping towards the end of the day. He said it would be tough for a new batter. I just wanted to survive till the end of the day,” he said.

About the state of play – Pakistan are 145 for 0 in response to Bangladesh’s 330 all out – Liton is hopeful that a new day brings better luck. After all, all 10 wickets in this match have fallen in the first session of play.

“We are not thinking about the result yet. When we lost four wickets before lunch, everyone thought we would be bowled out early. Mushfiq bhai and I put together a good partnership. By the end of the day, we were thinking about a big total.

“But cricket is unpredictable. Pakistan are in a good position now. If we can take two or three wickets tomorrow morning, we will be back on par. The run-rate isn’t too high. It is difficult to score quickly on this pitch. A lot depends on the third day,” he said.

“It is always a difficult question about consistency. Everyone tries to be consistent. I will continue the process of my last six or seven Tests. I can’t expect to score a hundred in my next innings. I have to start from zero next time. It is always a challenge, but I will try to stick to my process,” he said.