We have big dreams, including winning the World Cup: Mehidy Hasan

Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan, on the back of his side’s stunning 38-run win over South Africa, has claimed that progress can only be achieved by dreaming big, and has revealed that his side has major ambitions, including winning the World Cup some day. 

On Friday Bangladesh faced off against a full-strength South African side at SuperSport Park, Centurion, and against all odds registered a stunning 38-run win over the hosts. The victory turned out to be the Tigers’ first ever on South African soil.

With Bangladesh having registered two massive upsets already in 2022 - versus New Zealand in January and South Africa on Friday - Mehidy has asserted that the young unit is daring to dream big.

"It is not possible to look for progress if you don't have big dreams," Mehidy said, reported ESPN Cricinfo.

"We are dreaming big. We want to win more overseas series. We want to win the Asia Cup, the World Cup. We are following these plans and trying to stick to the right process."

Mehidy played a key role in the Tigers’ victory on Friday, scoring a quickfire 19 with the bat and then following it up with a four-wicket haul with the ball. It was the off-spinner’s wicket of David Miller that all but sealed victory for the visitors. 

But despite the all-rounder’s figures reading 4/61, it was not all too pretty at one point, with the 24-year-old conceding 42 runs off his first 6 overs.

Mehidy revealed that it was a piece of advice from Shakib al Hasan that calmed him down and eventually helped him turn his fortunes around.

"When I was leaking a lot of runs, I told Tamim bhai that he can trust me. I will get him the wickets," Mehidy said. 

"Litton da was also supporting me. He was constantly telling me that I can turn things around."

"I tried to bowl according to the merit of the wicket. I got a bit of turn from my end in the second spell," he added. 

"Shakib bhai told me to bowl slower. I always listen to Shakib bhai in tough situations. He has vast experience, and he usually assesses the wicket very well.

"When I am in two minds or under pressure, I keep telling myself that I can do it. I think this is a good thing. I motivate myself."

The second ODI will be played at the Wanderers on Sunday, March 20. As things stand, Bangladesh are top of the ODI Super League standings with 11 wins from 16 matches.