Mushfiqur confident Bangladesh can crack Tests

mushfiqurrahim - cropped

Having won all three ODIs at the start of Pakistan's visit, as well as a sole Twenty20, Bangladesh will now look to complete a clean sweep in two Tests – starting in Khulna on Tuesday.

Bangladesh have lost all eight previous Tests with Pakistan, but are riding the crest of a wave after their exploits in the shorter forms.

And captain Mushfiqur Rahim believes their limited-overs success can translate to a rare Test triumph.

"If we can carry our confidence and play well for five days, we can expect something good," he said. 

"And expectation is good for the players I think, because it helps to get the best out of them. Our players are really confident and ready to give their best.

"It's not easy in Tests, [but] I am confident that we have bowlers capable of taking 20 wickets in a match, and also batsmen who could give us a 600 plus team total."

They face a Pakistan side boosted by the addition of Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq, the 40-year-old having sat out the games so far after his post-World Cup retirement from limited-overs cricket.

Joining Misbah for the Tests is experienced batsman Younis Khan, and the pair could be crucial in their attempts to rescue an embarrassing tour so far.

Pakistan's most recent Test results should provide cause for optimism, having whitewashed a two-match series with Australia in October last year before a tightly-fought drawn three-game rubber with New Zealand the following month.

"Our Test side is quite experienced and we have been playing with this combination for quite long now," Misbah said. 

"We have more experience in this side, some consistent performers in the Test side. So I hope we can continue with that.

"But you have to respect the opposition, Bangladesh has been doing well especially since the World Cup. 

"They have been playing good cricket. So we need to be at our best. They are good at their home conditions. Keeping an eye on that, we have to really give it our best shot."

Bangladesh have three new caps in their squad after calling up Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das and Mohammad Shahid, while Pakistan will be without Rahat Ali due to a hamstring injury.

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