Bangladesh all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz has jumped up three places in the Test all-rounder’s rankings after the first Test against West Indies and is jointly third in the rankings alongside Shakib Al Hasan.
Not often can a cricketer boast reaching a milestone just by stepping onto the field. But on Friday, all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz reached not one but two significant career milestones when he went out for the toss ahead of the first of the two Tests against West Indies in Antigua.
Mikyle Louis and Alick Athanaze both fell just short of maiden Test centuries as West Indies reached 250-5 at stumps on the opening day of the first Test of two against Bangladesh on Friday.
Bangladesh’s Test record against the West Indies stands at four wins in 20 encounters, with just two victories on Caribbean soil -- both in 2009.
Bangladesh take on the West Indies in the first Test in Antigua today, hoping their slightly inexperienced batting line-up can weather the pace storm. Antigua has a strong recent record of making Bangladesh batters suffer.
The match will begin at 8:00 PM Bangladesh time and is an opportunity for the Tigers to gear up before their final assignment of the ongoing ICC Test Championship 2023-25 cycle – a two-Test series against the West Indies – begins at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on November 22.
In all likelihood, Miraz, named vice-captain, is set to captain the side in West Indies Tests, taking over duties from Najmul Hossain Shanto, who has been ruled out of the upcoming Tests due to a groin strain. Shanto, who was also unable to play yesterday due to that injury, talked about Miraz’s innings at the interval.
Mahmudullah Riyad fell in the nervous nineties for the first time in his international career, but not before the veteran smashed a brilliant run-a-ball 98 to propel Bangladesh to 244 for eight in the series-deciding third ODI against Afghanistan in Sharjah yesterday.
Bangladesh all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz claimed that the pitch used for the first ODI of the three-match against Afghanistan on Wednesday changed abruptly to cause a thumping collapse in the Tigers’ batting effort, leading to a 92-run loss at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
After one-half of the Bangladesh contingent boarded the first flight to London at 1.40 am on Sunday midnight, the second half of the team’s contingent left for the United Kingdom in the morning today for their three-match ODI series against Ireland, part of the ICC Men's World Cup Super League.
Despite the fact that Bangladesh always banked on the spin friendly surfaces especially in the longest format of the game at home but according to all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz the hosts will continue their positive approach from the white ball format and expecting a sporting pitch for the one-off Test against Ireland from tomorrow.
The good news is the CT scan done on Miraz revealed no cause for concern. However, he was taken to an ophthalmologist for extra precautions.
Skipper Shakib Al Hasan lauded the team's effort after Bangladesh registered a historic maiden T20I series win over the world champions England by beating the visitors by four wickets in the second of the three-match series at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Sunday.
With the Sher-e-Bangla surface offering a lot of grip and turn for the slower bowlers, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, in for Shamim Patwary for this match, turned the screws on England with his best figures of four for 12.
Skipper Tamim Iqbal felt that having a bad series is part and parcel of the game but when some members of the team do not perform, others need to stand up.
Bangladesh all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz made it to the ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year for 2022.
Catch up with all the latest stories of the day.
2023 is expected to be the year of hope for Bangladesh, especially with the ODI World Cup in the calendar.
Mehedi Hasan Miraz's rise on the international stage continues as the ace all-rounder has capped 2022 off with a place in Wisden's ODI team of the year.