Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza felt two of his most experienced campaigners performed when they needed to. The ever-reliable Mushfiqur Rahim and ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan stepped up at the right time to guide the hosts to a 145-run win over Zimbabwe in the first ODI of the three-match series in Mirpur yesterday.

Shakib had made headlines on numerous occasions for his exploits with the bat and ball, yet one of his desires had remained unfulfilled, until last night. The left-arm spinner picked up his maiden five-for in 157th attempt as the visitors folded for 128 in chase of 274.

Mashrafe, during the post-match press briefing, described what a five-for means for a bowler. “For Shakib, a five- or six-wicket haul doesn't matter because he has always delivered his best. Yet, it's a relief for him, since he got it for the first time. I can feel it because I haven't got one in Test cricket. So that's good for him.”

It was indeed a special moment for Shakib, who celebrated each dismissal with great zest. However, in regards to the context of the match, Mushfiqur's hundred was what had propelled the Tigers to a position of strength. The wicket-keeper batsman scored 107 off 109 deliveries on a wicket which was on the slower side, and yet kept the scoreboard ticking right from the first delivery.

The right-hander has had a brilliant run in 2015 even though he failed to make the most of his starts in the previous two series. Like Shakib's maiden five-for, the fourth ODI hundred came as a relief for Mushfiqur, who felt the good outing in the practice match gave him confidence.

“I wanted to play the practice match because I couldn't score runs in the national league and I needed match practice. So I had requested the coach. After scoring runs in the practice match, I got confident. I realised that I just needed to spend some time in the middle. Today [Saturday] I felt good early on and I realised that I could play well,” said the man-of-the-match award winner.

Mushfiqur scored his first century in ODIs in 2011 against the same opposition in Harare, but he was more satisfied with yesterday's ton as it helped his side win the match, unlike on the former occasion. “I felt bad at that time [2011] because it's disappointing to lose as a team even if you get the man-of-the-match award. But I am happy that I played well and the team won this time,” said Mushfiqur.

“I couldn't play as per my expectation in the last two series but I still tried to contribute. And today's 100 felt good. I won't say relief, but at this point of time I am on another level of confidence. Overall, I thank God for giving me a chance to grab this opportunity,” added the batsman.

Mushfiqur also thanked Sabbir Rahman for 'making things easier for him'. “Sabbir's innings was really crucial because it's not easy to score runs on this wicket. The way he came and scored runs took away the pressure from me.”