Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan rued a close five-run loss to India in Men’s T20 World Cup Group 2 Super 12 match at the Adelaide Oval, saying that a similar scenario is being replayed all the time of them falling short narrowly against their neighbours.
Bangladesh seemed to be cruising to the target of 185 with Litton Das making a stunning 27-ball 60 as they reached 66 for no loss in first seven overs. But rain interruption changed the equation to 151 in 16 overs.
The rain break worked well in India’s favour as Rahul’s brilliant run-out of Das post rain break triggered a Bangladesh meltdown as they could make only 79 runs in the remaining nine overs, losing six wickets in a bid to go for the big shots.
“It has been the story when we play against India. We are almost there but we never finish the line. It was a good game of cricket, the crowd enjoyed it and both teams enjoyed it, and that’s what we want. In the end, someone has to win and someone has to lose,” said Shakib in the post-match presentation ceremony.
Talking about Das’ batting efforts, Shakib remarked, “Litton is batting really well, probably he’s our best batsman going around. We thought we could chase this down after that start.”
Bangladesh’s strike bowler Taskin Ahmed’s quota of overs was finished straightaway. Though he didn’t get any scalps, he was able to finish his spell at an economy rate of 3.8
“Our plan was to get India’s top order quickly, that’s why I bowled out Taskin, he’s been our main bowler. Unfortunately he couldn’t get wickets today, he was unlucky but it was a plan to get India’s top order out to dictate the game,” added Shakib.
With Bangladesh’s quest to reach semi-finals ending, Shakib signed off by saying his team will look to enjoy playing their final match in the tournament against Pakistan at Adelaide on Sunday. “We’re positive, we wanted to enjoy this World Cup, hopefully we can continue this.”
