New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum on Monday said that the Kiwis have come a long way ever since the infamous 4-0 one-day series loss inflicted on them by hosts Bangladesh three years ago. With the two-match Test series ending in a draw, the two teams will now lock horns in the first of the three-match ODI series which will begin today at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
Kiwi skipper McCullum stressed that his side will want to make sure that there will be no repeat of the 2010 series.
‘Personally it is a lot different from how it was back then as we have evolved a lot as a team,’ McCullum told reporters at Mirpur on Monday.
‘We certainly haven’t forgotten it. 4-0 was a very one-sided contest which Bangladesh thoroughly deserved to win that series.
‘We played some bad shots. We weren’t prepared for the series and we have tried to plan against that by having guys prepare a lot better.
‘From our point of view we want to curve out our own performances, and it would be great for us to turn the tables from what happened the last time.
‘But it’s not a major motivating factor; we have got enough motivating factors, trying to win the series in itself,’ said McCullum.
New Zealand have made a host of changes in their ODI squad set to face Bangladesh, with as many as eight players departing from the Test squad.
Pace bowlers Neil Wagner, Trent Boult and Doug Bracewell, batsmen Peter Fulton and Dean Brownlie, spinners Bruce Martin and Ish Sodhi and wicket-keeper BJ Watling have made way for the new additions to the ODI squad.
Colin Munro, Anton Devcich, Grant Elliott, Nathan McCullum, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Tim Southee, Kyle Mills and Mitchell McClenaghan have come in as replacements.
‘We have got more experience in the one-day side. I think the one-day team is pretty set in how we play,’ said McCullum.
‘We have had more success in the one day game of late. We probably feel a lot more confident in the one-day format at this point of time,’ he added.
The second one-dayer will take place at Mirpur on Thursday with the third and final one-day international scheduled to be held at Fatullah on Sunday.
The solitary Twenty20 international will be held at Mirpur on November 6.
-With New Age input