Bangladesh, playing in the Champions Trophy for only the second time, are aiming to leave their mark on the tournament.
The Tigers edged ahead of West Indies in the world rankings to get their place at the 50-over tournament, where they will play the opening match against hosts England on June 1. Incidentally, Bangladesh had beaten England at the 2015 World Cup in Australia to seal their first-round exit then.
Considered perennial underdogs, the Tigers have seen a dramatic rise in their fortunes since the 2015 World Cup. Their move up the rankings saw West Indies fall out of the top eight teams allowed at the Champions Trophy.
Bangladesh reached the 2015 World Cup quarter-finals and then posted consecutive one day series victories against Pakistan, India and South Africa to zoom up the rankings.
Captain Mashrafe Mortaza believes the team has the mental strength to overcome the tough conditions in England.
“If you look at our group, you must feel it will be a difficult job for us,” Mashrafe said before leaving Dhaka. “But you can never be sure. We defeated England twice in those conditions, beat Australia once.
“Though those victories are a thing of the past, at least they give you some self-belief. It all depends now on how we mentally make preparations for the tournament,” he said.
Bangladesh open the tournament against England on June 1 at the Oval before facing Australia on the same ground on June 5. They end their group phase against New Zealand at Cardiff on June 9.
Past history:
Bangladesh last took part in the Champions Trophy in 2006, missing the cut in the 2009 and 2013 editions. But this time they enter the competition ranked sixth, ahead of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and West Indies – their highest ranking in their history.
But Bangladesh have only ever won one match in the Champions Trophy, in the four times they have been part of the tournament. They played the qualifying stages at the 2000 and the 2006 editions. In the 2002 edition in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh were in the same pool as Australia and New Zealand and were out after losing both their matches. In 2004, they lost to South Africa and West Indies in the group stage.
Player to watch out: Mustafizur Rahman
Mustafizur “The Fizz” Rahman has emerged as one of the best young bowlers to come out of Asia in recent years. He blitzed through four Irish wickets in an eight-wicket win in a warm-up international last week to highlight his potential. If he continues the the way he has, he could be a potent bowling weapon for Bangladesh in England.
“We have done well in our last few matches against England and we are confident.”
– Mehedi Hasan
Squad
Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Somya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehdi Hasan, Sunzamul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Taskin Ahmed, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam
With inputs from AFP
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