Mortaza draws on the spirit of Cardiff ’05 in must-win showdown with Aussies

It may be 12 years ago, and memories invariably dim with time, but veteran seamer Mashrafe Mortaza will never forget the fateful day he was an integral part of the first and only Bangladeshi side to defeat Australia.

The tale of their Cardiff triumph in June 2005, one of the great upsets in modern cricket history, has been told from the Australian vantage point through several tomes of the time.

So what Mashrafe, now national skipper, revealed about their own experience was refreshing. Namely, that they celebrated that night by hiring a luxury car to take them around town.

"I can remember I got Gilchrist out," he said. That he did, the then-21-year-old trapping the great walloper leg-before with the second ball of the match, setting the story in motion. "And in the night time, we were driven in a limousine. It is a great memory."

Mashrafe, the only still-active player from either side that day (claiming very tidy figures of 1/33 from 10 overs) is quick to return to the script: that it was a long time ago and has no relationship to what will play out on Monday.

But he is confident that his current team have the mettle to go up against the world champions, in what amounts to a must-win encounter for both after neither took wins from their opening Pool A fixtures.

"We are confident enough to play against them and we will try our level best,” he said. "So hopefully we'll cope with all the pressures.”

In their game on Thursday against England, Mashrafe’s men tallied an impressive 305/6 in their 50 overs. But the hosts easily ran over the top in the chase to win by eight wickets with 16 balls spare.

That lesson learned, Mashrafe is striving for “30 more runs” against Steve Smith’s Australians. In turn, he is content in maintaining a batsman-heavy starting XI to achieve that objective.

"One thing is clear that we have to score a large sum," he said. "Normally 300 in one-day cricket is good enough, but if the wicket is like this you have to rethink it."

On the surface, the same pitch will be used where neither side scored 300 on Saturday. But Mashrafe said he didn’t believe a worn track would have a material difference on their chances against Australia.

“At least we know what score we can defend or how much we have to score," he added. "The team is playing good cricket now, so let's see what happens."

If Bangladesh defeat Australia it will echo their performance in the ICC World Cup of 2015 when they bundled England out of the tournament.

As for Mashrafe, Cardiff 2005 and London 2017? It mightn't be the most melodic, but it still has a nice ring to it.