Mustafiz shines brightest in gloomy Mirpur

Rain may have washed out play in the first ODI between Bangladesh and New Zealand at Mirpur, but the biggest positive for the hosts will have been the bowling of Mustafizur Rahman.

One may argue that Mustafiz in Mirpur is a different beast to Mustafiz elsewhere as he has taken 51 wickets in 26 ODI with an average of 16.82 and an economy of 4.09 whereas his overall ODI average is 24.24 and economy is 5.07 from 92 matches.

Once again, Mustafiz was in full flow against New Zealand as he took three wickets for just 27 runs in his seven overs with an economy of 3.85 before rain came and washed the game away. 

Assistant coach Nic Pothas was full of praise for the left-arm pacer in the post-match press conference on Thursday.

"It is very exciting. Fizz (Mustafizur Rahman) has been working hard for the last month or so, to try to find some rhythm with the new ball. He has worked hard with Allan Donald. You can see the fruits, and it is coming along at the right time before the World Cup. We are very happy for him," Pothas said.

Although Mustafiz has a reputation for being a quality death overs bowler, he's had trouble being as effective with the new ball up front and Pothas was especially happy to see Mustafiz improving with the new ball.

"We know his death bowling credentials. You can wake him up at 3 o'clock in the morning to bowl death overs, and he will do them with the best in the world," he said.

"Those two roles (bowling with the new ball and the old ball) are very specific. They almost live in two different boxes. It is no different to a batter playing a particular type of innings and then having to do range hitting at the end. These guys are professionals. They have to be able to do anything. He prioritises it very well. He is very experienced," Pothas explained. 

Another player who performed well and increased his chances of making the World Cup squad was off-spinner Nasum Ahmed as he took two wickets for just 21 runs in his eight overs at an economy of just 2.62.

Pothas praised Nasum as well: "Nasum is a quality white-ball bowler. We have seen that in the Asia Cup and here. He adapted very well with the conditions. He read the wicket well. He got the pace and line right. He is gaining in confidence and experience in every single game. He learns very quickly. We are very happy with him."

But despite the positives, questions remain over the quality of the Mirpur pitch prepared by curator Gamini de Silva as it was a typically sticky surface that suited Mustafiz's cutters and the spinners, and these won't be the sort of surfaces in India, where big runs are expected.

But Pothas came in defense of the curator and felt that Gamini did the best he could: "We can't rate the pitch, but put everything into context. It has been raining for three weeks. That pitch had two hours under the sun, maximum. What do we expect? It is a living breathing organism. Gamini can't produce miracles. I thought he did well with the time he had."

The next ODI is on Saturday with the third match on Tuesday in Mirpur and rain might be playing spoilsport in those matches too according to the weather forecast.