Bangladesh are in a position to tinker with the playing XI in the last of the five-match ODI series against Zimbabwe today and home side skipper Mashrafe bin Mortaza admitted the fact and hinted a few changes in the line-up.
One could not even think of such a situation two months back as the Tigers suffered one defeat after another in the first 10 months of this year, but having shown a great amount of maturity and consistency against Zimbabwe throughout the series has actually given them the luxury to experiment keeping the World Cup in mind.
The hosts will take the field in Mirpur today looking to hand the visitors their fifth defeat in the limited overs format and Mashrafe believes making a few changes will not affect their target.
“There were changes in the previous match. It will only affect our performance when we think about it. But we are bringing in capable players and they know their responsibilities so I am hoping for good things,” said Mashrafe during the pre-match conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.
However, the 31-year-old also admitted that it is difficult to judge a player from one or two games and the team think-tank is also not throwing away a player on the basis of his performance in the little opportunities they get.
The ‘Narail Express’ also did not forget to mention the opportunity to improve and said, “We have won games, so we have been consistent in that area. But performance-wise, it has not happened. We have to improve in those areas. We are focusing on it in training. We cannot collapse again, because it makes life difficult for us. We have to keep improving in those areas.”
Injury has been the biggest hurdle for the veteran fast bowler over the years and Mashrafe admitted of facing some difficulties while playing the fourth ODI.
“If I am performing I should play all ODIs and T20s since I don’t play Test matches. It wouldn’t be an honest decision not to play ODIs if I am not fit. The last match was tough for me as there was just a day’s gap before the game. After playing that game, I got a bit more confidence,” he added.
On the other hand, Zimbabwe are eyeing their only win in their 45-day stay in Bangladesh and according to Hamilton Masakadza they will take the positives from the last two games where they showed glimpses of a fightback.
“Yeah I think so, I think we got a few games where we have been really in. We were outplayed in a couple of the games but in the other two we came up with something. We didn’t pull it through in the end. I think, yeah, the boys still have it in them,” said Masakadza.
The 31-year-old opening batsman informed that it requires a collective performance from both the batting and bowling department to clinch their first win of the dismal tour.