After beating visiting West Indies in the first encounter of three-match series, Bangladesh ODI captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza on Sunday said they have to face more challenges in coming days. The Tigers came as victorious in Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium by five wickets. They did not give any chance to West Indies to dominate in the match. Mashrafe himself took three wickets for 30 runs which is Bangladesh’s best bowling figure in the match. “I don’t think (we’ve already established ourselves as a strong force in the world cricket).We have to face more challenges which are different at home and abroad,” Bangladesh captain insisted at the post-match press meet. Bangladesh played four batsmen who are recognised as openers. That was not the right reflection of their preparation approach keeping the World Cup in mind. They overlooked Mohammad Mithun who is considered the best option for the number five batting spot. “We’ve played Soumya over Mithun thinking about the dew factor. We would have used him to bowl a few overs if spinners had failed to do so. And Soumya has been doing well as a batsman too,” Mashrafe told the reporters. Unlike the Test series, Bangladesh prioritised the pace bowlers in the first One-day International. They went to the field with three specialist pace-bowlers. “Bangladeshi pacers have been doing well in One-day Internationals. The scenario is different in Tests perhaps, especially in this kind of wicket. But when it comes to One-day, pacers have been doing well,” Mashrafe said while backing the three-pacer strategy. The second and third encounters of the series will take place on December 11 and 14 respectively. While the first one will be held in Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, the remaining one will be played in Sylhet International Stadium.
Right after the One-day International series, both teams will lock horns with each other in a three-match T20Is series.
