Rhodes wants more consistency from Tigers

Bangladesh head coach Steve Rhodes wants more consistent performances from the Tigers after they beat the West Indies convincingly in their first ODI of the tri-nation series.

Bangladesh’s second match of the series against host Ireland was called off Thursday due to rain and wet outfield.

The Tigers were in confident mood after thrashing the Windies and winning Thursday's match would have given the Tigers a good chance to shuffle some players in the upcoming games. 

But weather had the final say Thursday and the frustrated Bangladesh camp had to be satisfied with two points from the match.

Tigers coach Rhodes informed that the players are in good shape after winning the first ODI dominantly. 

@BCBtigers' second ODI of the tri-nation series against host @Irelandcricket has been called off due to rain and wet outfield at the Village, Malahiade Cricket Club in Dublin Thursdayhttps://t.co/lOhlLhUnwd#CRICKET #BANGLADESH #BANGLADESHCRICKET #BCBTIGERS #BCB #TIGERS #IRELAND

— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) May 9, 2019

But the coach believes they need to be more consistent in order to make an impact in the forthcoming World Cup in England and Wales.

“We had a really good meeting [Wednesday] night. We had a great game against the West Indies. I was really happy how the players performed. I believe we have some very good players in our squad. They have showed their talent against the West Indies in the first ODI,” said Rhodes after the Ireland match was called off at Malahide Cricket Club in Dublin. 

“This is why some of the team will be worried about Bangladesh. But we know we are capable of a bad game as well (smiles). My job and captain Mashrafe’s [bin Mortaza] job is to convert the squad into a more consistent team in terms of performance. If we start to do that, then maybe we can go a long way in the tournament,” Rhodes added.

The only concern from the first game was Mustafizur Rahman’s bowling as the left-arm paceman conceded 84 runs from his quota of 10 overs. 

Rhodes though has full confidence on the left-arm pacer. 

@BCBtigers team have full confidence that pacer @Mustafiz90 will bounce back strongly sooner or later as the left-armer is a key weapon in the Bangladesh bowling department.https://t.co/OI1EC9ipEE#BCBTIGERS #BCB #TIGERS #CRICKET #BANGLADESH #BANGLADESHCRICKET #MUSTAFIZURRAHMAN

— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) May 8, 2019

“I am not concerned about Mustafiz at all. He is a wonderful ODI bowler. Not too long ago he was ranked among the top five bowlers in the world. Not many Bangladesh bowlers have achieved that,” he said.

After the first game, Bangladesh did not practice Wednesday and the game was washed out Thursday. 

Bangladesh’s next match is against the West Indies Monday. 

When queried if he is concerned about the relatively long break after such a confident start, the coach said he only hopes weather permits training the next day.

“This time in Ireland and England, we often get washed out games. But we have a lot of cricket ahead of us. We will be concerned if we miss the practice session [today]. Hopefully the weather will be okay,” Rhodes concluded.