Bangladesh have hosted a three-match ODI series against England, which will start tomorrow at Mirpur Cricket Ground. Both sides take this series as the preparation for the upcoming ICC ODI World Cup in winter.
Bangladesh have been doing well in ODI cricket in their home condition. Their last home series loss was against the same opponent England in 2016. Since then, Bangladesh haven’t lost a home series, winning seven series in a row.
Besides, England are aiming to get back in form. Before winning the series against South Africa back in last month, England lost five games in a row. Despite this, England’s skipper Josh Buttler hopes to get a good result.
Hathurusingha knows facing England would be difficult
Bangladeshi coach Hathurusingha knows how difficult it can be to play against world champions. During the press conference, Hathurusingha said, “If we have to lift ourselves for (England), that’s not the right motivation. We are playing for the national team, we always want to do well. 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. We want to see where we are at, and find out the gap that we have to bridge. If we do well in these conditions, it will give us confidence.”
However, Hathurusingha is confident about the series. “We are playing full strength. I don’t think they have come with their full strength. Some of them are playing Test cricket. I back our skills and strength. Saying that, they have had incredible (laughs) strength in the last ten years or so,” the coach added.
Josh Buttler’s thought
England skipper Josh Buttler had a press briefing ahead of the ODI series. The captain takes this series as a challenge for the upcoming world cup. “It’ll be a great challenge for us. Obviously Bangladesh are very tough to beat in their home conditions, they beat India as well.”
The skipper added, “So this is exactly the kind of challenge we need, nearing the World Cup, to test ourselves in probably the conditions that we as a side will find the hardest. This can be a great measure of where we are as a team.”
In Asia, the pitch is not as fast as in Europe. Spinners usually get more advantage than the pacers from this kind of slow pitch. Since the pitch is slow, high-scoring games are rarely played here. England’s skipper knows that fact.
Buttler said, “We’re expecting a slow and low wicket, which is exactly what we want, to test ourselves in tough conditions which will be great preparation for us moving forward.”
