BAN vs ENG 1st ODI: England are currently at the height of their cricketing prowess. The Test team is busy playing in New Zealand, whereas the ODI team is stationed in Bangladesh for a three-match ODI series and three-match T20I series. England won the first match by 3 wickets and they have now gone 1-0 up in the series. The match was played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka and both teams fought valiantly to gain an upper hand in the series.
Bangladesh had won the toss and had opted to bat first. Najmul Hossain Shanto with his 58 off 82 deliveries and Mahmudullah with his 31 off 48 deliveries propelled Bangladesh's score to 209. The score seemed easy to chase as far as England are concerned, but Bangladesh on their home soil are a different side and England were reminded of it. While chasing 209, Bangladesh had reduced England to 65/4 at one point, but it was Dawid Malan who played a solid knock of 114* off 145 deliveries and helped England chase the total down.
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After playing a match-winning knock, Malan said:
Your game tends to grow as you start to play in different conditions. Different conditions come with a great learning curve. I had some previous experience here and to be honest it is not an easy wicket to start on. You need to trust the method and need to get through tough times. I played two seasons for the Prime Dholeshwar Sporting Club and it was brilliant. It helped my game. In England, we play the ball a lot squarer, but here, in Bangladesh, the wickets are skiddy during the day. It gets better as the game goes on and gets slower in the evening. I cultivated a different way of playing spin over here.
Malan played for Dholeshwar Sporting Club in 2013-14 and 2014-15, featuring in 24 matches in DPL. He also rated this knock as one of his best. The 2nd ODI of the series will be played on March 3, 2023.
