Bangladesh coach Phil Simmons expressed optimism despite a 99-run defeat to Zimbabwe, with Mehidy Hasan Miraz recovering from fever ahead of the Afghanistan ODI on October 21.
Bangladesh face Afghanistan in an ODI match on October 21, 2026, at Sharjah Cricket Stadium as part of the 2026 Afghanistan Tri-Nation Series, which runs from October 17 to 23 in the United Arab Emirates. The tournament also features Zimbabwe. Bangladesh suffered a 99-run defeat to Zimbabwe in their opening fixture, a result that prompted Bangladesh Cricket Board president Tamim Iqbal to hold an extended meeting with players and coaching staff in the dressing room after the match.
Coach Phil Simmons addressed the loss and the team's preparation for the Afghanistan encounter. Mehidy Hasan Miraz, the former Bangladesh captain, missed the Zimbabwe game due to fever. On Monday, October 19, Mehidy emerged from his hotel room for the first time since the Test series against Afghanistan and attended a practice session in Abu Dhabi.
“Yeah, it's great to see him as he had been in bed for the last couple days struggling. He's still not fully there but hopefully with today and tomorrow he can get some more rest and be ready for the next game,” Simmons said as quoted by Cricbuzz.
Litton Das, who took over the captaincy from Mehidy, was ruled out of the entire tri-nation series after failing a fitness assessment before the Zimbabwe match. This meant Bangladesh faced Zimbabwe without both Mehidy and their new captain, creating additional challenges for the team.
“The energy is still good. We had a nice meeting this morning and put things on the table like what we did and we didn't do well and we know what we have to do now. It's not like we've been playing bad, we've been playing very good. We had a day where nothing really went well, so we know how to come back from that. So we're going to work today and prepare ourselves mentally over the next couple days so we'll be ready for that next game,” Simmons said.
Addressing the Zimbabwe defeat
Reflecting on Bangladesh’s batting collapse against Zimbabwe, Simmons said the team failed to assess the situation properly despite getting off to a promising start. Hours after the defeat, Bangladesh Cricket Board president Tamim Iqbal held an extensive meeting with the players and team management in the dressing room, which continued late into the night.
Reports suggested that Tamim was unhappy with the team’s direction and had expressed his displeasure in strong terms. Simmons, however, offered a different interpretation of the president’s message.
“When we batted, we just lacked the understanding of the situation and knowing that with a start like that, we just had to make sure we bat for the 50 overs and we'd have won the game. So just a few little points here and there, but things that add up and you lose the game. So we know that that's the small points we have to make sure that we take control of,” said Simmons.
“The message [from Tamim] is to keep working hard, keep trying to make sure and understand that we're representing Bangladesh and we're representing how many millions of people and everybody's looking for us to be successful and I think that was the main message from him,” he concluded.