The Bangladesh Cricket Board may extend Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s tenure as ODI captain after his recent success with the team. BCB cricket operations chairman Nazmul Abedeen Fahim gave the indication while speaking about Miraz’s leadership.
“Regarding Miraz’s captaincy, I would say he has done very well,” Fahim said. “Many people had a lot to say about his leadership. But in my opinion he has managed the team very effectively.”
He also praised the way Miraz works with the senior players in the squad.
“He has an excellent relationship with the senior players,” Fahim said. “He is receiving great support from everyone. That is a good quality for a captain.”
Miraz was appointed ODI captain in June last year for a one year term. His tenure is set to end in June this year. Before that, Bangladesh will host New Zealand in an ODI series in April.
Fahim said Miraz could continue in the role if his work continues in the same way.
“He has been given the responsibility for one year. It may be extended,” he said. “When more time passes we will be able to say more about it.”
“The way he is working, he is fulfilling the role of a responsible captain,” Fahim added. “We certainly want him to perform well and continue in this role.”
He also made it clear that the board does not want to take quick decisions after a bad result.
“We do not want a situation where a player is removed simply after a poor performance,” he said. “Or a captain is replaced immediately after doing badly. That is not what we want.”
“We want him to perform well,” Fahim added. “He should contribute to the team as a player and as a captain. Then he can continue with the responsibility.”
Bangladesh recently won the ODI series against Pakistan at home by 2-1. Fahim said the result was important for the team.
“It was a challenging series for us,” he said. “Considering our current ranking and the requirements we must meet to qualify for the upcoming ODI World Cup, the ranking issue was certainly an important factor.”
“So there were some challenges for us in that regard,” Fahim added. “Fortunately, we managed to overcome them in this series.”
He also said a 3-0 win would have helped Bangladesh move further up in the rankings.
“If we could have won the series 3–0 our position in the rankings could have improved further,” he said. “But I think achieving this result and showing this level of performance against a team like Pakistan, who are currently ranked fourth, is satisfactory.”
