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England pass eventful opening day in Mirpur

  • Sports Correspondent
  • 26 February, 2023 12:00 AM
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England pass eventful opening day in Mirpur
England players are seen in jolly mood during a training session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Saturday. – BCB PHOTO

When the touring England team arrived at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Saturday for their first-day training for the upcoming white-ball series against Bangladesh, there was no electricity in and around the venue and it forced them to enter a dark dressing room at the home of cricket.

However, it hardly mattered for them as they were seen enjoying every bit since putting their foot at the practice venue.

Music was being played when they were doing their net session and the playlist included songs like Hotel California by Eagles, Californication by Red Hot Chili Peppers and With or Without You by U2 and they seemed to be doing their practice while enjoying the rhythm of the music.

The leg-spin bowling from pacer Jofra Archer seemed to be one of the highlights of their practice session while they seemed to be more inclined to hone their skills against spin bowlers, a probable reason for picking only spinners as their net bowlers.

There was bounce in the wicket and the batsmen were playing their shots but for some of them, it never looked too foreign considering their attachment to Bangladesh domestic cricket.

Dawid Malan, who played two games in the just concluded Bangladesh Premier League for the champions Comilla Victorians side, was seen guiding his teammates considering he knows all lanes and by lanes of the Dhaka venue as he has been coming here since 2016.

Malan is a seasoned campaigner in Bangladesh’s domestic circuit, having played for several franchises in the BPL - Barishal Bulls, Comilla Warriors and Khulna Titans and this year for Comilla Victorians.

In fact, by the time he started to play in the BPL, he had already represented Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club in the Dhaka Premier League 2013-14 season, the country’s traditional list A tournament played by the leading clubs of Dhaka.

Apart from him, Moeen Ali and Mark Wood also played in the BPL and they were seen telling their teammates how things operate in this part of the world.

The Three Lions will play three ODIs and as many T20Is during their two-week-long tour in Bangladesh.

The ODIs are part of the ICC World Cup Super League and the first two matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur respectively on March 1 and 3 while the third and last one will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram on March 6.

The first T20I will be played on March 9 in Chattogram while the next two T20Is are scheduled in Mirpur on March 12 and 14 respectively.