Mehidy Hasan Miraz had barely settled into the role of Bangladesh’s ODI captain when the victories began to pile up. Handed the captaincy unexpectedly last year, the off-spinner has since led his side to three consecutive series wins against West Indies, Pakistan, and most recently New Zealand.
The decisive third match, played on Thursday in Chattogram, ended in a commanding 55-run win for Bangladesh, completing a series victory over New Zealand. Speaking at the post-match press conference as the team’s representative, Miraz reflected on the significance of the hat-trick of titles with characteristic humility.
“Obviously, it feels wonderful. We have won three series in a row, and I feel that Bangladesh winning is a far greater achievement than any personal milestone for me,” he said.
Having lost the opening match of the series, Miraz admitted he drew upon a knockout-stage mentality to galvanise his side for the must-win matches that followed.
“As captain, the way I thought about it — we play many tournaments where it is knockout; if you lose, you are out. I applied that same thinking here. We lost the first match, so I told myself that if we lose the second, the series is gone. I treated each game as an opportunity — win it, and perhaps you earn another chance. That is the mindset I adopted.”
Mustafizur Rahman, Litton Das and Najmul Hossain Shanto were among the standout performers in the series-clinching victory. Miraz was full of praise for his experienced teammates.
“They are all very experienced cricketers who have been representing Bangladesh for a long time. I believe the right moment to show your best performance is precisely when it matters most — because at the end of the day, it is the team’s result that counts.”
