‘Pressure lets me give back to my team’

A placard reading "We love you Miraz" held by a Bangladesh fan in the stands of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium yesterday reflected the trust the all-rounder has gained in recent times.

Never shy of taking on responsibilities, Mehedi Hasan Miraz has been skipper Shakib Al Hasan's go-to man as of late.

The 25-year-old once again showed his class in the Tigers' all-important World Cup 2023 opener against Afghanistan in Dharamshala yesterday, producing an all-round performance to guide Bangladesh to a convincing six-wicket win.

Miraz did the job with the ball first -- the off-spinner ended with figures of three for 25 in nine overs, including three maidens. The all-rounder then came in at number three for the first time in ODIs and went on to play a momentum-swinging 57-run knock off 73 deliveries.

It was Miraz's 97-run third-wicket stand with Najmul Hossain Shanto that saw Bangladesh recover from a precarious two for 27 in chase of a paltry 157-run target.

Miraz has often shied away from expressing his own philosophy, remaining in the shadow of the seniors despite having the potential to become the next big thing in Bangladesh cricket.

But it was a different Miraz attending the post-match presser yesterday. Bold, poised, and confident, it was as if Miraz's improvement as a genuine all-rounder had transformed his personality as well. An ever-smiling Miraz is now more confident and specific with his replies.

"I have worked really hard on my batting. I have thought long and hard about it, how I can improve my batting. I prepared myself really well. The team also gave me a lot of opportunities up the order. It is a big deal for me," said Miraz when asked about his mental preparedness in order to bat at any position asked.

In the past 12 months, Miraz batted at various positions -- from coming in at number nine to scoring a century while opening the innings against the same opposition in the last Asia Cup in September.

"Every position poses a different situation. I don't think too much whenever presented with an opportunity. If you think simply, it is better to bat anywhere above number eight. The team gets help if I play well. I face some problems but I don't focus on them. I have to perform well for the team, that's the most important thing," he added.

Miraz, however, admitted that he was nervous initially with the ball in hand after he gave away nine in his first over. But the off-spinner managed to make a comeback, pairing with Shakib to build pressure on the Afghans with some tight bowling.

"When the pacers weren't doing well at the top, it put the spinners under pressure. Shakib bhai got two wickets which boosted the team. We started bowling well from both ends. We didn't expect such a wicket in Dharamhsala, but we got the ball to turn in our first two or three overs. The ball stopped a bit. We shared this information with everyone, about how to bowl in this wicket. We had great communication throughout the game," said Miraz.

The all-rounder has always been handy with the ball in any format, but his recent transformation as a batter unsurprisingly brought the topic of him being the next Shakib in the making for Bangladesh. But for now, Miraz kept quiet on the matter, perhaps not thinking too much about it as well and focusing only on doing his job.

Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed dismissed Afghanistan's opening batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz in the very first over of the innings in the second T2Oi of the two-match series at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Sunday. 

Gurbaz, who edged one over third man for a maximum in the fourth delivery of the over, tried to pull a short one towards the legside but the ball got big on him and he could only top edge it to the bowler himself as he departed for five-ball eight.

The dismissal gave Taskin his 50th T20I scalp making him only the third Bangladesh bowler to achieve the feat after Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman.

Rubel Hossain is known for blowing hot and cold in a career spanning over a decade. Prone to err in the death overs, the right-arm pacer with a slinging action perhaps bowled his best ten overs in the one-day international against India in the Asia Cup final on Friday. His figures of 10-2-26-2 was a demonstration of how well he bowled in Dubai. He had Ravindra Jadeja caught in the 48th over, which was his last over, to create that window for a late twist in a pulsating final that Bangladesh lost off the last ball of the game.  

Bangladesh will play two official warm-up games in Guwahati before starting their ICC World Cup campaign against Afghanistan on October 7.

The official warm-up fixtures for the cricket's showpiece event in India was announced yesterday.

The Tigers will take on Sri Lanka in the first warm-up game on September 29 at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati and play the second match against England at the same venue on October 2.

The 10 teams will each play two official 50-over contests during the week leading up to the start of the World Cup on October 5, with matches to be held in three different cities across India.

Warm-up fixtures:

September 29: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka, Guwahati

South Africa v Afghanistan, Thiruvananthapuram

New Zealand v Pakistan, Hyderabad

September 30: India v England, Guwahati

Australia v Netherlands, Thiruvananthapuram

October 2: England v Bangladesh, Guwahati

New Zealand v South Africa, Thiruvananthapuram

October 3: Afghanistan v Sri Lanka, Guwahati

India v Netherlands, Thiruvananthapuram

Pakistan v Australia, Hyderabad