Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz on Saturday said he is relishing the opportunity to bat at the top of the order. Miraz, who has batted in five different positions in ODIs this year, scored 57 and took three wickets as Bangladesh beat Afghanistan by six wickets in its 2023 ODI World Cup opener in Dharamsala.
“I always play at number 8, so it was a great opportunity to bat at the top. I always want to do well. When I score runs, both my team and I benefit from it,” Miraz said.
About bowling in tandem with captain Shakib Al Hasan, who also picked three wickets, Miraz said, “I was a little bit cautious in my mind early on while bowling. I didn’t bowl a great first over either. But the captain told me to bowl in the right areas and told me to have a positive mindset. So, credit goes to him.”
While Bangladesh spinners took six wickets between them on a slow Dharamsala surface, Afghanistan’s spin trio struggled to get similar purchase. “Their batters played our spinners better than we played theirs,” said Afghanistan head coach, Jonathan Trott. “We sort of veered away from our batting plans. It’s also about managing the pressure of a big tournament like the World Cup. That’s where we fell short. We have two massive games coming up and will look to bounce back.”
