DHAKA, June 3, 2020 (BSS) – Bangladesh ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal said the biggest improvement in the country’s cricket saw in the last 10 years is that the Tigers remain upbeat of their chance to win any match they play against any top guns.
“Once there was time that we knew the fate of the match as we played to just make the match more competitive one. That was the time when we didn’t believe that we can win against any opponents,” Tamim recently said in a video interview with former Indian cricketer cum commentator Sanjay Manjrekar on ESPNcricinfo.
“But the things have changed in the last 10 years. Now we believe, we can win against any team in any condition. The fans also believe that we are capable of winning against any opponent and that’s why the expectation of the fans is always high,” he added.
Bangladesh somehow failed to make them a force to reckon with in the Test cricket and to some extent in T20 but whereas in one-day format, they have been the top teams on regular basis.
Specifically the cricketing renaissance of Bangladesh began in 2015 when they made the quarterfinal of the World Cup for the first time and proved that the result was not a fluke by winning the maiden bilateral ODI series against India, Pakistan and South Africa.
In the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017, they showed their capability once again and made it to the semifinal. The flow of the victory went on and on and in the process, they won their first ever multinational trophy, beating West Indies in a Tri-nation tournament in Ireland.
However they started well in 2019 World Cup too but stumbled in the halfway through the tournament and finished as low as eighth in 10-team tournament. That kick-started their poor run of form in this format as they further were whitewashed by Sri Lanka in three-match ODI series just after the World Cup.
The Tigers bounced back by sweeping the three-match ODI series at home soil against Zimbabwe but the ODI team seemed not to be in great touch like the past. Tamim Iqbal indeed succeeded Mashrafe Bin Mortaza as the ODI skipper at a time, when he had enormous task ahead to rejuvenate the team.
“I’m not an experienced captain, so there is chance that I would make mistakes but I’ll ensure that the team always comes first,” he remarked.
“We’ll see how it goes. If I am doing justice, then I’ll continue. And, if I am not, I’ll be the first one to put my hands up,” he concluded.