Bangladesh have clinched the ongoing Bangabandhu Cricket Series 2021 with one match to spare. The Tigers won the first two matches of the three-match series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur. This time Tamim Iqbal-led team left the capital Dhaka and reached Chattogram ahead of their mission whitewash.
The Tigers left for the port city at noon on Saturday. Team Bangladesh landed at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram at 1.15 pm.
Alongside host Bangladesh, Jason Mohammad-led West Indies arrived in the port city as well. After arriving, both teams have checked into the hotel and rested on Saturday. The players will now be getting onto the field for practice on Sunday.
Bangladesh have already clinched the ODI series 2-0, after winning the first game by six wickets on Wednesday and the second one by seven wickets on Friday at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur. The third and final ODI will be played at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram on Monday. The first of the two-Tests will also be played at the same venue from February 3.
Therefore, the final ODI match has now become just a formality. However, the hosts have a golden opportunity to whitewash the Caribbean.
In the last ODI series played between the two in December 2018, Bangladesh won the series by 2-1. Despite winning the first match of the series, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza’s team lost the second match. However, Tigers then won the third match to clinch the series.
This time, however, the picture is different. After winning the first two matches, the Tigers celebrated the series victory in the capital. Now, if they can win the final ODI and whitewash Windies on Monday, Bangladesh will end the first series of the ICC ODI Super League with full 30 points on board.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief selector Minhajul Abedin Nannu hinted there won’t be any changes to the squad for the final ODI. As the series have now been done and dusted, will we seen any player rotation in the squad? Will any of the youngsters get a nod in the last match? Is there any possibility of fast bowler Shoriful Islam and off spinner all-rounder Sheikh Mehedi Hasan making their debut in Chattogram?
Minhajul said, “We are thinking of preparing the youth for the future. We included them in the team for this reason. However, we can't experiment with the team too much, we don't want to. Because the result of each of our matches is important. I want maximum points from these games to qualify for the World Cup. We have to keep that in mind. So, there is no opportunity to experiment too much with the team.”
Bangladesh ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal however hinted that the side will break the winning combination to give some players a chance to play in the third ODI.
