New Zealand will be facing Bangladesh in the fifth match of the T20I tri-series at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Wednesday. This will be the second meeting between both sides in the ongoing series. The Kiwis had handed the Bangladesh Tigers an eight-wicket defeat in the last encounter.
New Zealand would be heading into this clash on the back of an emphatic nine-wicket win over Pakistan in the previous fixture. They are currently the table-toppers having won two of their three matches so far with four points to their tally and an impressive net run rate of +0.646. The hosts would be eager to continue their winning momentum leading up to the T20 World Cup in Australia in a few days.
Things have not gone well for Bangladesh at all in this tri-series. They are in a precarious situation having lost both their games so far and have a negative NRR of 1.092. They would be hoping for a revival in their fortunes from hereon in order to avoid getting knocked out from the competition. The Bangladesh players must come forward and click as a unit in order to avoid any further setbacks.
Bangladesh cricket team technical consultant Sridharan Sriram remarked that the captain Shakib al Hasan is leading the team in his own way and said the team management has all the support for him.
In the video message of BCB, the technical consultant said that the captain is trying to keep the team strong from the beginning.
“There will be ups and downs in international cricket. We have to be steady during these ups and downs. Shakib is doing a great job to maintain this environment in the team. He's taking the boys out, always talking. I think he has a clear plan to take this team forward,” said Sriram.
Sriram believes Shakib will take the team forward in his own way and the coaching staff will try to ease that path.
“We have all our support for him. We want that team to move forward. This is his team, we will support him in every way,”
The coach lauded Najmul Hossain Shanto on his return to the T20I side after being dropped from the Asia Cup and UAE series. Shanto top-scored with 33 off 29 balls for Bangladesh in the second match of the Tri-nation series.
"It is encouraging to see the way Shanto played after getting back into the team. Although he was dismissed for 30, the way he batted against Boult and Southee, there are definitely many positives to take,” he added.
