The three-match ODI series between Bangladesh and England is set to begin today (Wednesday) in Mirpur. Ahead of the first match, Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha expressed confidence in the team's ability to perform well despite the fast bowling threat posed by the visitors.
Bangladesh enters this series with the happy memory of beating India at home in December 2020. Hathurusingha said the teams for the first two ODIs would be similar to the one that beat India.
The Bangladesh coach believes that the pace attack of the English side will be the biggest challenge for the hosts.
“They have one of the best pace attacks in the world. They have five fast bowlers and three spinners on this tour. The challenge will be to play their fast bowlers in this series,” Hathurusingha said.
Bangladesh is expected to field a formidable team in this series, whereas England will be without some of their key batters who are currently playing a Test series in New Zealand. Nevertheless, Hathurusingha acknowledged that despite being understaffed, England remains a formidable opponent given their impressive performances in the past decade.
“They are the world champions. They have one team playing somewhere else; they have another team here. They have a mind-blowing depth of talent,” Hathurusingha added.
Ahead of this ODI series, which is a part of the World Cup Super League, Bangladesh's coach is confident about the performance of Mustafizur Rahman.
“When he is in form, he is one of the world’s best bowlers. We won the India series when he started,” he said. “He is coming back to that form now. He bowled really well in the recent India series too. He always bowls in the crucial moments, so we will try to use him as a strike bowler.”
Moeen Ali, the England allrounder, also said that Mustafizur may play an important role for the Tigers.
“We know he is a very good bowler and he is a threat,” Moeen said. “We also know Bangladesh actually has a very good bowling attack, especially in these conditions.”
Spinners are likely to play a significant role in this series. In addition to Shakib Al Hasan and Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Bangladesh has Taijul Islam in their arsenal. The combined attack of these three spinners could pose a significant challenge to the English batters. In contrast, England has Moeen, Adil Rashid, and young Rehan Ahemd. They can be the biggest threat to the Tigers on home soil.
“When you come to these places, you expect good spinners bowling, good spin bowling,” Moeen said. “They are very good, we know how well they've done over the years here, and Bangladesh as a team has done really well. But it's not just their spinners; their seamers are also very good.”
Before this series, Bangladesh played a total of 21 ODIs against England and won only four of them, with the last win coming more than six years ago.
The first two ODIs are scheduled to take place on March 1st and 3rd in Dhaka, while the third ODI will be held in Chattogram on March 6th. All matches will commence at 12 pm each day.