Bangladesh limited-over captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza on Saturday expressed happiness after winning the series-deciding ODI against the visiting Afghanistan and believes they executed their plans well compared to the last two matches.
“We won the series, this is one good thing for the team. After the second match there was a bit of pressure. It feels good to come out of it. This will give us more confidence,” Mashrafe told the media.
“The upcoming series against England will be more challenging. If we can play confidently then we will have a good chance of winning that series. We have played well at home so being confident is important. I believe we have achieved a lot of confidence from the Afghanistan series,” he said.
Mashrafe informed that he was pleased to see Mosharraf Hossain playing an important role in the bowling department and praised the left-arm spinner as he grabbed his rare opportunity with both hands.
Mosharraf returned to the national side after an eight-year break. He last featured in the 50-over format against South Africa in 2008.
“Mosharraf bowled well. When a player performs from the reserve team then the team become more confident. Obviously the role that he wanted to play, he did it perfectly. Hopefully his own confidence will increase and he will improve more,” said Mashrafe.
Meanwhile, the Tigers skipper, who fell awkwardly during his run-up in his second over, was taken out of the field as a precautionary measure.
Later, he came back and bowled a few overs. Mashrafe stated that there is slight swelling in his ankle but he is hopeful that he will be fully fit before the England series.
“Actually, after that incident, I bowled with a short run-up. I still can't say. Hopefully, the slight pain that I have at the moment will be okay soon,” he said.
On the other hand, man of the match and player of the series Tamim Iqbal said he is delighted to become the highest Bangladesh centurion in ODIs.
Tamim smashed a run-a-ball 118, his seventh ODI hundred, leapfrogging Shakib al Hasan's tally of six.
“For me, every hundred is very special. It doesn’t matter against whom I score. Hundred is a hundred. It is always special, especially in a game like [Saturday] - the decider. I don’t see any hundred in a small way. Every hundred is special,” said Tamim.
Tamim shared a brilliant 140-run second-wicket partnership with Sabbir Rahman, who was promoted to No 3 for the first time in his ODI career.
The southpaw heaped praise on Sabbir and believes the exciting right-hander can be a good prospect for Bangladesh in future.
“I always say he is a very exciting player. I thought he had an opportunity to score a hundred. It was good. The thing is that, he grabbed the opportunity. I am very happy for him. If he does play at three in the other matches as well, hopefully he can do well,” he added.
Wednesday, July 22, 2026
