Mohammad Ashraful spoke after the Independence Day exhibition match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, where BCB Red beat BCB Green by 123 runs. The batting coach of Bangladesh played in the match.
Bangladesh will hold a camp ahead of the home ODI series against New Zealand.
Ashraful said the squad is not final yet. “We still do not fully know the squad. I and Mahmudullah have signed. The rest is not final.”
He confirmed the camp plan. “We will start with fitness and fielding. From the 27th to the 2nd. Then one day off. Skill work starts from the 4th.”
Players from all formats will join the camp. “All three format players will be in this camp. Test players too.”
He spoke about the need to work on fitness. “We did not get enough time before. There were back to back matches. Now we have time. One week for fitness and fielding, then skill work.”
Ashraful also backed players taking part in franchise leagues like the Pakistan Super League. “The more they play these leagues, the better. PSL has high scoring games. Teams score big and chase as well. This helps our players. This is the first time many of our players are playing these leagues. It is a good sign.”
On Shakib Al Hasan, he made the process clear. “It will follow a process. He will not come and play directly. But a player like Shakib gives a big benefit. He can contribute in two ways.”
Ashraful praised the team environment. “I have been with the team since the Ireland series. I am enjoying it. Players are doing well. They want to improve. We now have healthy competition.”
He also spoke about the pace attack. “For many years, our pace unit has been strong. We have many bowlers who can bowl at 140.”
He gave examples of depth in the squad. “Soumya Sarkar was top scorer but missed the Pakistan series. Tanzid Tamim got a chance and scored a century. That shows competition.”
He said team thinking has changed. “Now we do not pull players back from leagues. We give chances to others. That helps build bench strength.”
Speaking about ODI form ahead of the home series against New Zealand, he saw progress. “We won two series in a row. Batters did well. Saif and Soumya played very well. Against Pakistan, Tanzid and Saif had a 100 run stand. Batters are taking responsibility now.”
