The 15-year wait is coming to an end today. During this time, Bangladesh has come a long way on the ODI success train, and has also overcome difficult times. But they have not faced Australia in a bilateral ODI series. After that series in 2011, they have lost two of the three times they have met Australia in ICC tournaments, and one match was washed out due to rain.
Of course, in the last decade and a half, Bangladesh has only won one of its 22 ODI matches against Australia. I don’t think most Bangladesh fans need to be reminded separately of where or when that victory was. That memory of Cardiff is something no one should forget!
Bangladesh has changed a lot in the time between the two bilateral series with Australia. They have won the last four series at home. In a team that once relied on spinners, the pacers are now playing a bigger role in winning. They were also the main architects of the success in the last two series against Pakistan and New Zealand.
Bangladesh’s star fast bowler Nahid RanaShamsul Haque
Nahid Rana, who took 16 wickets in two series, is now the talk of the town. It will be easy to understand how well Bangladesh’s pacers have actually done if you look at the statistics. Bangladesh has played six ODIs so far this year—the pacers have taken 69 wickets at an average of just 22.60, while the spinners have taken only 26 wickets at an average of 35.50.
But those successes came because they showed the courage to play on sporting wickets at home. Will Bangladesh show such courage against Australia, who have been playing on pace-friendly wickets all year round? Listen to the words of team captain Mehedi Hasan Miraj, ‘We will try to play on good wickets.’ Miraj also gave an explanation later, ‘Since we have tournaments ahead (like the World Cup, Asia Cup), if we can be confident by playing on good wickets before that, it will help the team.’
Australia, however, do not have much of a weapon to challenge Bangladesh on good wickets. They have come to play Bangladesh without stars like Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins. A day before the start of the series, the captain of this series, Mitchell Marsh, was injured and Travis Head was ruled out due to family reasons.
Mehdi Hasan Miraj at the press conferenceShamsul Haque
They also lack experience in pace bowling. Nathan Ellis, who has played 20 ODIs, is the biggest hope for Australia there. In response to the question of whether they will face an additional challenge against Bangladesh this time, Josh Inglis, who replaced Marsh as the captain of the Aussies, said, “Playing against Bangladesh is always challenging. On top of that, they will be playing at home. Many of us don’t have experience playing here. But we have confidence in ourselves.”Read more
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Even though Bangladesh is on the verge of winning, it is not that they are not in crisis. The concern is more about the middle order batsmen. Although they have shown signs of overcoming it in the last two series, there is no complete relief. After four years, Mosaddek Hossain has been brought back to the ODI team, and he may get a chance in the playing XI as well.
Right-handed batting with off-spin – Mosaddek and captain Miraj have similar playing styles. However, Miraj said in yesterday’s press conference that this will not be a problem for them. Of the 43 ODIs that Mosaddek has played, Miraj was also in 27. The two have also played together in tournaments like the World Cup.
Mosaddek in practiceShamsul Haque
Mosaddek has scored 336 runs in 7 innings at an average of 67.33 and a strike rate of 133.33 in this year’s Dhaka Premier League, taking 12 wickets. Towhid Hridoy has scored 528 runs in 8 innings in the league, while Nazmul, who played 3 matches, has also scored a century in one. Their performance in the 50-over match is giving hope to captain Miraj, ‘I am very confident because everyone is in very good form. The batsmen and bowlers are in very good rhythm. Everyone played very well in the Premier League.’
Bangladesh has somewhat reduced the risk of not being able to play directly in the ODI World Cup by defeating the West Indies, Pakistan and New Zealand in three consecutive series. Still, there is no chance of a comeback. However, in the meantime, Bangladesh also has to prepare for next year’s World Cup. Miraj wants to handle both challenges equally. Their first test in the three-match series against Australia is today.
