World Cup 2023: Mehidy Hasan Miraz has been an unsung hero of Bangladesh cricket, says Mashrafe Mortaza

Former skipper Mashrafe Mortaza heaped praise on all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz, calling the Bangladesh cricketer ‘a complete package’ and an ‘unsung hero’ of their cricket.

Mashrafe, one of Bangladesh’s greatest cricketers, said that Mehidy has shown a great amount of flexibility with his batting. Last year, Mehidy became one of the two batters, who scored ODI hundreds while coming in at No.8 or lower.

Mehidy also showed his class as an opener, having recently notched a hundred against Afghanistan in the Asian Games. In the World Cup 2023 warm-up match against Sri Lanka at the Barsapara Stadium in Guhawati, Mehidy scored an unbeaten 67.

However, Mashrafe picked Litton Das and Tanzid Hasan Tamim as the opening batters for the mega event to be played on Indian soil.

“Litton and Tanzid Tamim are the two specialist openers. In my opinion, they will play as the openers with Miraz being the makeshift option. Shanto will play at No.3. Miraz is an unsung hero of this team as he has scored runs in any position he has batted in.

“Litton and Tanzid don’t necessarily have to perform in every match. If they can shuffle and play their best cricket in four to five matches, it will help the team immensely,” Mashrafe was quoted as saying on his official Facebook page.

Mashrafe, who last played international cricket back in March 2020, asked the Bangladesh batters to carry on and make their starts count on flat pitches in the World Cup.

“Tanzid has played well as an opener in the recent past and handled spin well against the Afghans. Hence, the management could send him to open against Afghanistan. The top order will be challenged overall, but given the flat wickets in India, if the batters can carry on after good starts, it will help the team,” he stated.

“Mehidy is a complete package as the management trusts him to bat at any position and he bowls 10 overs. And it’s not in the last two to three months; it has been over the last two years,” Mashrafe added.

Before their match against the Afghans, the Tigers are scheduled to face Jos Buttler’s England in the other practice match in Guwahati on Monday, October 2.