I wanted long-term captaincy: Tamim

Tamim Iqbal has recently been named as the Bangladesh one-day international (ODI) captain and it received mixed reactions. 

The left-handed opener will be taking over the reins from Bangladesh's most successful captain in history, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, and will have massive shoes to fill. 

He explained why he took the captaincy of the ODI team and what he wants to do.

"The captaincy came as a unanimous decision from many people and I had a reason behind taking the captaincy. I wanted the captaincy for a long period, not just a few games, so that I could implement my ideas and my blueprint. In 2015, when we won against Pakistan under Mashrafe Bhai's captaincy, we formed a belief that we too know how to win," Tamim told the media on Saturday. 

With Shakib Al Hasan banned from all forms of international cricket for a year, Tamim will get an opportunity to be captain of the ODI team in four games, three against Ireland, and one against Pakistan.

Whether he keeps the job beyond that remains to be seen but from his words that is the impression one gets. 

Tamim himself knows that he doesn't have much experience in captaincy and has asked for time to prove himself.

"To be very honest I am not an experienced captain. If I say I've captained many teams in many places before I'd be lying. I'm going to need a bit of time. I myself don't know how I will do six months on from here on in but I hope everyone is patient. I will try my best to do what is best for the team," he said. 

"It's difficult to judge something based on just five to six games so let's see how things go. I know that I am taking the captaincy from someone that reached a level that will be hard to replicate as a captain," he added.

Mashrafe had previously said that the job of a captain was not only on the field but how he handled things off the field and Tamim has echoed that statement: "One thing that's very important off the field is the team culture. How the players think about the game and how they view themselves and how professional they are. There is room for improvement there and that will be my first job." 

"If we can be more disciplined and hardworking during training and cut down on the mistakes, we can hopefully reap the benefits of that in the long run. I feel we are one of the most disciplined teams in world cricket but we can get better. It would be good if I can improve that, and it reflects on the field," the 30-year-old explained. 

With the ODI team in transition with the likes of Mashrafe and Shakib not in it and some of the younger players like Liton Das stepping up, Tamim believed the onus lied in the team effort and not just the younger or senior players.

"I think both the junior and senior players have areas where they can improve. For example Liton, the way he used to think about the game six months ago and the way he thinks now is very different. How I spoke with him before and how I speak with him now is also different and you can see that relationship in the field too. The younger players have a lot of desire to do well and our job is to ensure that we give them that platform," he said. 

Tamim also spoke about his vision as captain and his philosophy: "I want to put our team into a process where we can build ourselves to become a top team. Everyone says this but it's about working on the minute details and building from there. How we can train better, how we play, and how I can help other players so that they also do well are important." 

"I like being aggressive as a captain but it all depends on the situation and the opponent and we have to act accordingly," he concluded