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Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz is eyeing a series win and anticipates an even bigger challenge after defeating Australia by nine wickets in a dominant fashion at Darwin.
On Sunday, Bangladesh Cricket experienced one of its biggest moments, defeating a full-strength side with a nine-wicket haul from Hasan Mahmud, with an all-round show from Mehidy Hasan Miraz and a historic century from Tanzid Hasan being the highlights. Miraz was sensational, scoring a 154-ball 65 to balloon Bangladesh's first innings lead to 228 runs and taking a five-wicket haul later to set a chase of just 57 runs, which Bangladesh completed with nine wickets in hand. It provides Bangladesh the opportunity to clinch a rare 2-0 series result when the teams move to Mackay in north Queensland for the second and final Test of the series, and Miraz believes his side is well placed to complete the rout. "Of course we are thinking that way (clinching the series), and we want to stay focused on the approach we have taken," he said as quoted by ICC. "Since we won the first match, an even bigger challenge awaits us. (But) winning a Test match is never easy. Right now, we just want to carry this momentum forward, and we will plan for the next match later," he added. Bangladesh received plenty of strong efforts from a variety of their XI across the first Test, with Player of the Match Hasan Mahmud picking up six wickets in the first innings and nine for the match, opener Tanzid Hasan scoring a superb century when the game was on the line and Miraz making strong contributions with both bat and ball. The victory came on the back of a disappointing thrashing to Cricket Australia XI just before the first Test when they were bowled out for just 54 in their second innings of Bangladesh's only tour match, but Miraz said the side's management never lost faith in their ability. "When I was struggling myself, our team manager, Nafis Iqbal, gave me a lot of encouragement on how to play in these conditions," said Miraz. "I was very happy mentally and talked to him a lot. At one point, he even bowled to me in the nets, and I faced his bowling." "I also want to mention Mushtaq Ahmed from the team management. After we lost the first match, he went to every single player and told us, 'Have faith. If you believe, winning is possible, and faith can take you a long way. Starting from those small things, we began to believe, and you can all see the results today," he concluded. The second Test commences in Mackay on Saturday, where a victory for Bangladesh will catapult them past Australia and into third place on the World Test Championship standings as they attempt to win a place in the final for the first time. Series schedule: First Test: Bangladesh won by nine wicketsSecond Test: August 22-26, Mackay. (ANI)
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