Mash targets positivity

The return of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, now limited to only ODI cricket, is a welcome one not just because of his experience and quality with ball in hand, but also because his presence in the dressing room signals a change in mindset. In that regard, his presence is especially important now in the aftermath of a 2-0 thrashing in the Tests on the tour of South Africa, and true to his nature he has targeted a change in mindset as the Tigers look for some success in the ODI series starting today at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.

"At this moment we need to prepare ourselves mentally; I don't think that a few days' practice after the Tests till now will be enough to bring about any big changes," said Mashrafe before the team's afternoon practice session at the match venue yesterday. "The thing that we can do is take the field with a changed mentality; that will help make it easier. We have to try and leave all the negatives outside the field, think positively and try to realise that on the field.

"We know how strong they [South Africa] are in these conditions; big teams have come here and found it very difficult. I think the one we are currently on is this year's toughest tour. If we can enter the match with fresh minds and give our hundred per cent in the battle, then anything is possible."

The refrain in the Bangladesh camp has been to forget about the 2-0 thrashing in the Test series. But there are lessons to learn from the tour so far. From a batting perspective, there have been 10 half-centuries on this tour so far (three in the Tests and seven in the two practice games), but the highest score has been Mominul Haque's 77 in the first innings of the first Test – stats which point to a tendency to throw away good starts that has proven costly so far.

"In ODIs and Tests we have been talking about this for a long time. Particularly from the start of this year we have been trying for batsmen who get set to play big innings," said Mashrafe. "Not everyone has the same kind of day -- those who score 25 or 30 should carry on to bigger innings. I hope that if we can take the field with a positive mindset, we can do well in this regard."

Since the Ireland tour and the Champions Trophy, the youngsters of the team – Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Mehedi Hasan Miraz – have not really been pulling their weight. Mashrafe called for more mental toughness from them, saying that seniors like Shakib Al Hasan have too much expectations already and can use the youngsters' help.

"I don't want to create any pressure on them obviously; I only want them to play freely. If you are talking about the recent past, I am not too happy with their performance. They have the ability; maybe they have not been able to turn it around mentally. That is also something to think about. I want them to be stronger mentally, so that they can adopt the mentality that the seniors have as soon as possible.

"Obviously the seniors have greater responsibility, but the matches we have won have been through team performances."

The possible return of Tamim Iqbal will solve a lot of issues, as the left-hander -- who is in the final stages of recovery from a thigh muscle tear sustained earlier on tour which forced him out of the second Test – lends the solidity and firepower at the top that Bangladesh has been sorely missing.

"Tamim will run today [Saturday] and then we will take a final call. We are positive about his chances of making a comeback tomorrow [Sunday]," Mashrafe informed.

Staying true to his talk of maintaining a positive mindset, Mashrafe said that attacking the South Africans was the only way. "Far from playing defensive cricket, if we approach the match with a mindset that says of 'we can defeat them on our day', then I think we will not even get a chance. From the first ball, whether we bat or bowl, the only way to get out of this is to play attacking cricket."