Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain credited his bowling unit for holding their nerves in the middle overs against Sri Lanka, which helped them start their ICC T20 World Cup campaign on the right note in Dallas on Saturday.
Bangladesh opted to field, and after the powerplay, Sri Lanka appeared to be heading for a strong total at 53 for two.
However, the Bangladesh bowling unit regrouped, restricting Sri Lanka to 124-9, thanks to three wickets each from Rishad Hossain and Mustafizur Rahman.
“I did not have any doubt even when they were doing well in the powerplay because I always had faith in my bowling unit.
The game can change with one or two wickets, and given the performance of our bowlers in the last couple of series, I was very confident in them, and they delivered,” Najmul told reporters following their win.
“We did not get a good start, but the way everyone stayed calm showed good character.
We know the batting wasn’t great, but on such a wicket and in a pressure game, these things happen.
It was a very important match, and although the batting struggled, we got two points, which is why I am feeling good,” he said.
Najmul admitted this was the most high-pressure match he had played so far in his career, given the brewing rivalry between the two sides.
“You could say that.
From the last two days, we all knew the significance of this match.
Personally, I felt I had not played such a high-pressure match before, but we managed to win.
We all knew how important this match was for us,” he said.
Despite the batting unit not performing well, Najmul refused to point fingers and insisted that set batters should bat longer to help the team cross the finish line.
“I don’t think we need to worry much about the batting.
It was a pressure match, and in the end, we won and got two points.
All the batsmen know we haven’t batted well, but not everyone can perform every day.
Hridoy played well, Riyad bhai finished the game, and Litton gave a good start.
I hope that whoever gets set should win the game for us,” said Najmul.
“The game isn’t just for the openers; all seven or eight batsmen have responsibilities.
Whoever gets set should finish the game, and I hope the openers will give a good start in the next game,” he added.
Najmul acknowledged that the win would boost their confidence and played down the chatter surrounding the wicket in New York, the venue for their next game against South Africa.
“We watched the Sri Lanka vs. South Africa game on TV together as a team.
We planned our approach based on that game, and the India-Pakistan match on the 9th will give us more insights into the pitch.
We will bat and bowl according to the wicket prepared for our game,” he added.
Meanwhile, Sri Lankan pacer Nuwan Thushara, who picked up 4-18, insisted they were 20 runs short.
“The pitch was difficult, and it was hard for the batters.
We were just 20 runs short.
If we had those extra runs, we could have won.
But we did our best with 120, playing until the last ball, believing we could win,” said Nuwan, adding that his stint with Mumbai Indians in the recent IPL helped him stay calm under pressure.
“The pitches in India were very different, with higher scores, making it hard to bowl.
So, it was easier for me to apply what I learned there to this match, handling the pressure,” he concluded.
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