Shakib keen to seal series for Bangladesh

Mirpur, April 18 (IANS) After ending their 16-year long Pakistan hoodoo, Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is aiming to seal the three-match series by beating their sub-continent rivals in the second One-Day International (ODI).

Bangladesh coasted to a 79-run win in the first ODI at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium here on Friday. The teams will lock horns again at the same venue on Sunday, reports bdnews.24.com.

Shakib, who led the team in absence of regular captain Mashrafe Mortaza, said the next tie was very crucial.

"We will definitely try to win the next match. If we can win that match then we will try to win the third. Our first target is to win the series and will try that in the next match. We will think of 3-0 only if we win the second match," said Shakib.

Although the scorecard suggested an easy win for Bangladesh, Shakib said otherwise.

"It was a difficult win. If we can continue the result, will be good for us. Yes, it (winning the series) is possible. It feels good after a win, especially having won after such a long time, it is a big deal for the team," said the 28-year-old.

Shakib warned his teammates that winning the series will in no way be a walk in the park. "We will have the upper hand and the confidence will be high in the next two matches but it won’t be easy. We have to play our best cricket.”

Bangladesh registered their first win against Pakistan in all forms of the game after the 1999 World Cup. But the celebration was pretty flat given the occasion.

“We still believe that we can win. We are the favourites, so that’s why (it was like that). The last few matches that we played against Pakistan were close and they could have come our way, but they didn’t. In the end result came for us," Shakib explained.