Tigers eye perfect end

Soumya Sarker (R) is likely to be baptised as a Tiger when Bangladesh, who are on the verge of a clean sweep, play the fifth and final one-dayer against Zimbabwe in Mirpur today. Photo: Firoz Ahmed

Thirteen defeats in 14 matches was Bangladesh's ODI record this year prior to the ongoing Zimbabwe series. Heads were buried for most parts of the year and the players seemed to have had forgotten how to win games. A droopy Mushfiqur Rahim would attend the post-match press conferences with a look as confused as his fans; for neither of them knew what was going wrong.

Come this Monday, the Tigers have an opportunity to overcome that feeling by completing a flawless series. Sure enough, the scars left by the likes of Afghanistan, Hong Kong and a host of other teams, will linger despite the series win. But at the end of the day, finishing the year with a 5-0 whitewash is bound to leave a good taste; something that can be a reminder when the Tigers take on the likes of Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka in the World Cup in two months time.

"There were times this year when we lost close games and that's what put extra pressure on us. Now it is important that we finish this series well. It is important to continue well and that the players take this seriously. We need to perform better than the last four games here," urged a confident Mashrafe Bin Mortaza at the pre-match press conference yesterday.

Asked if it would be a disappointment if the Tigers failed to complete the whitewash, Mashrafe said, "After winning four games, I am not thinking about that. All the players are confident after going 4-0 up. Yes anything can happen in cricket but we have to be prepared to win and we will give our best."

Bangladesh have made wide-scale changes in this series. There were four squads announced for the five-match ODI series with the selectors doing a number of experiments. The latest player in the line of these changes is Soumya Sarker. A batsman who bowls pace, it's been Soumya's rather rare ability that has kept the selectors interested.

The frequent changes made by the selectors however, have also raised questions. While Mashrafe admitted that a single match is not enough to judge a player, he however indicated that the Tigers had little options; considering that this was the last series before the World Cup.

"If it was a 10-match series, it would have been easier but that's not possible. We are not throwing away a player after just one game or judging him on his performance of one game. But it is true that one match is not enough," said Mashrafe.

The team management is likely to play Soumya in place of Imrul Kayes, while Taijul Islam may get an opportunity in place of pacer Rubel Hossain.