Bangladesh captain Masharafee bin Murtaza urged his players to move on and leave behind the trauma that was created after their heart-breaking hara-kiri act against India in their ICC World Twenty20 match on Wednesday. Bangladesh were on top in most part of the match against the pre-tournament favourites for 237 balls and needed just two runs in remaining three balls but committed an inexplicable blunder losing three wickets and the match in those deliveries.
That incredible collapse and insanity upheld cricket’s most proud flag of being the most unpredictable game once again but that broke the Tigers’ heart along with those of 160 million Bangladeshi.
This is Bangladesh’s first loss by solitary margin in any format, which came against side that is regarded as their greatest rivals in the recent time. Bangladesh earlier lost a Twenty20 internationals and one-day international by two runs respectively against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
But Mashrafee wants to treat their latest defeat professionally asking his players to remain positive for their remaining match in the tournament.
‘It is very difficult losing a match like this. It is difficult to take something back from here to another match. But being a professional player, you have to take It.’ said Bangladesh skipper.
‘We have to play hard cricket in the last match. Obviously, if we can do something there, then we can take something from here (this tournament) back home. It is disappointing, but again we can still fight it out in the last match’.
The match, by far the most nerve-wrecking one in the tournament so far, saw Bangladesh needed 11 in the last over but Mushfqur Rahim made the equation in their favour hitting two boundaries before he holed in the deep trying for a boundary to seal the match.
Mahmudullah, known as one of the most level-headed man in his team, also committed the same blunder when he just needed to score two runs but his skipper did not want to blame anyone.
‘I don’t want to blame anyone. The match was so close that it could have gone any way. We produced a good performance till the last over. It’s very frustrating for the whole team.
‘It was a tough game for us. In the end it was very difficult to accept the result but we have to live with it and move on.’
Although the captain spoke positive words yet his profound grief was also evident as he was still bamboozled with the shock and unable to find any explanation of the fiasco.
‘Yes we should have been calculative in our shot selection in the final over and not adventurous. We should have been judicious in our shot selection. We were outstanding except for the last three balls. We executed everything well and were up to the mark.’
‘When you need 11 runs from six balls, you have to hit but when you hit two fours and need only two runs, you have to be little calculative. That was a huge disappointment.
‘Easily, the match could have gone our way, because two set well-settled batsmen were there. I don’t know how to describe, if it is luck or what,’ said a disappointed and confused Mortaza.
Mashrafee also shielded his premier batsman Mushfiq, who started celebrating three balls before, as he thought that it was nothing wrong with the act and rush of adernaline is almost impossible to control on that stage.
‘Mushfiq was very excited after hitting two boundaries in the final over. So he broke into a celebration. There was nothing negative about it. It was done at the spur of the moment,’ said a grimacing Mashrafee with a sigh of disbelief
-With New Age input
