Mohammad Salahuddin came to the coaching setup of Bangladesh national team after almost 15 years. Despite coming to international cricket after a long time, Salahuddin is regularly coaching in domestic cricket. Also, if any cricketer has a problem with his batting technique, Salahuddin helps him without hesitation.
Sharmin Akhtar Supta last played in international cricket in July last year. Supta is going to play a match in Bangladesh jersey 16 months after that ODI match against India in Mirpur. The 28-year-old woman cricketer has worked with Salahuddin for a long time now. In a press conference organized at BCB Media Center in Mirpur today, Supta said, 'I have been working with you for many days. He taught me a lot to change my batting. In the beginning, I had been playing cricket for a long time, so it was difficult for me to learn something new. So as time passed I was able to adapt to the techniques given by sir. So my batting approach has changed, which has made my game easier.'
Bangladesh is ahead of Ireland in women's ODI rankings. Bangladesh women's team is at the 8th place in the ranking with 80 rating points in 17 matches, while Ireland's rating points are only 51. However, Supta does not want to consider the Bangladesh-Ireland series as a ranking criterion. The top order batsman of Bangladesh said, 'Even if we are ahead of Ireland in the ranking, the series will not be easy. Our preparations are going on and we are confident that we can win the series. The plans we have for Ireland have been decided as a party. If we play according to our ability on the field, the results will come in our favor.'
The ODI series against Ireland will also serve as an important equation for Bangladesh to secure a direct ticket to the Women's ODI World Cup. Supta said, 'Every match is equally challenging for us. We have to win every match if we want to play directly in the World Cup.'
Bangladesh has two series to qualify for the World Cup. Bangladesh needs to score at least 8 points in six matches against Ireland and West Indies. In this regard, Supta said, 'We are paying more attention to the Ireland series than the West Indies. If I can bring results as expected in this series, I can play with confidence in the next series.'
The time ahead is 'challenging' for Supta to return to the national team after a long time. Many new cricketers have also come to the Bangladesh team. The 28-year-old cricketer said, 'We all have been playing cricket together for a long time. The National League, the Premier League—everywhere has experience playing together. The opportunity to play in the national team depends on the performance. Senior-junior in the team is not a matter; On the field, everyone tries to give their best as a professional cricketer. I emphasize on single rotation in my batting. Not all of us are that good at power hitting. But working on improving singles and power hitting.
