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Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz believes that the forthcoming two-Test series against Zimbabwe will be a great opportunity for the young cricketers to showcase their skills.

Sylhet International Cricket Stadium will host the first Test from April 20 to 24, followed by the second Test at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chottogram from April 28 to May 2.

Bangladesh’s last Test series was against the West Indies in November-December 2024, when the series ended in a 1-1 draw, with Mehidy leading the team in the absence of regular captain Najmul Hossain Shanto.

With a relatively weaker opponent, it will be an opportunity for Bangladesh to test some of their young players.

Wicketkeeper-batter Liton Das is set to miss the series, as he will participate in the Pakistan Super League after getting the No Objection Certificate from the BCB to play in the franchise league.

Mehidy said that whatever the strength of the opponent is, it always counts when someone performs.

‘International cricket is always tough. There’s no such thing as a big team or a small team. If you perform, that will count,’ Mehidy told reporters after Mohammedan’s Dhaka Premier Division cricket League match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Sunday.

‘There will be opportunities for the young players. In the Test we won against the West Indies, many regular players were absent. So the young players got the opportunity. That could be the case again in this series,’ said Mehidy.

However, he reminded them that they needed to perform.

 ‘The important thing is that they need to perform. If you see, many senior cricketers have already retired. So we will have to take the responsibility gradually. That’s why it’s important that we perform, because we have to take Bangladesh to the next level,’ he said.

‘This is our responsibility. How we can play well, we need to find that out. We need to improve after finding the aspects we need to improve in these kinds of series,’ added Mehidy.

Bangladesh are supposed to hold a training camp after a long gap in the longer format.

However, Mehidy said that the transformation wouldn’t be that difficult for them.

‘We have been playing in the DPL for a long time now. And this is the 50-over format, not T20, so we need to start hitting immediately. So there’s a similarity with the Tests. And we will get 10 days ahead of the first Test,’ said the all-rounder.

‘We may play a two-day warm-up game in Sylhet, though it will be decided by the team management. But I think 10 days is enough for preparing ourselves.’