‘We’re capable of beating Kiwis’

The structure of the ongoing World Cup in the United Kingdom and the special importance of momentum for the Bangladesh team mean that a regular refrain over the coming month will be that the Tigers' next match will be the toughest. It will suit Mashrafe Bin Mortaza well, because for the skipper taking it match by match is not mere sport speak but a mantra to live by. With Bangladesh having aced their first challenge by beating South Africa in their first World Cup game at The Oval on Sunday, eyes now turn to their next game at the same venue tomorrow against New Zealand.

It is just not a rebooting of expectations to say that New Zealand may well be a tougher proposition. While Bangladesh may have enjoyed a bit of advantage playing on a wicket that was staging its second match -- after the World Cup opener between South Africa and England -- the wicket against New Zealand will be a fresh one that still has a tinge of green. South Africa missed out on the services of the injured Dale Steyn, but New Zealand are expected to have their full pace battery at the ready -- Trent Boult and Matt Henry will test with early movement while Lockie Ferguson will look to burst through defences with his 145 kmph-plus fare. In their first match they shot out Sri Lanka for 136 and convincingly beat favourites India in a warm-up. Moreover, Bangladesh do not have a happy recent history against their opponents, having lost 3-0 in an ODI series in New Zealand in February.

On a well-deserved rest day yesterday, when most of the team were taking in the sights and sounds of London, team manager and former Bangladesh captain Khaled Mahmud was aware of the pitfalls of facing the Kiwis. However, he was not cowed and drew courage from the knowledge that the 15 players Bangladesh have for the World Cup will give the side enough options to field an eleven best suited to prevailing conditions.

"It will depend on the wicket, but we are prepared," Mahmud said in front of the team hotel. "The four players who were left out yesterday are all good players. Our bench is very strong. Sabbir [Rahman] scored a 100 in New Zealand, Liton [Das] is performing, Rubel [Hossain] is bowling very well in the nets and [Abu Jayed] Rahi also proved himself in Ireland. So if we have to make any practical changes after seeing the wicket, we are prepared for that. All respect to New Zealand, they are strong, but I also believe that we are capable of beating them."

There is more than a little substance behind that belief, with Mahmud singling out Bangladesh's bowling -- the batting cornered all attention -- during the opening win.

"I think Mustafizur's comeback was very strong for us. He is bowling so well in the nets that it is unbelievable. I would say that yesterday, he bowled at 80 per cent of the quality he bowls with in the nets. I believe he can do even better.

"We are very lucky in that when you look at our batting, four players are very experienced in international cricket. In our bowling, four players are also very experienced – Mashrafe and Shakib no doubt. But then you have Rubel and Mustafizur, even [Mehedi Hasan] Miraz is experienced now because he has played a fair amount of matches. We can say now that we are very good contenders for the top four."

After a strong team performance against South Africa, Mahmud still said there was room for improvement, especially in fielding, as Bangladesh dropped a few catches and missed some run-out opportunities. "In our fielding – we did well, the boys worked really hard – but we missed a few catches and a few runout chances, that could become expensive for us in these conditions."