Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan was disappointed in his team's bowling performance following the 106-run loss to England at the 2019 ICC World Cup in Cardiff. While he credited the England openers for setting up the mammoth total of 386, the all-rounder pointed at his team's inability to strike at regular intervals as the reason for the loss.
"Yes, disappointed with the results, or the manner we actually bowled. I thought we bowled really, really well against South Africa and against New Zealand. But you know, obviously, England played brilliantly. Credit goes to their batsman. The way their openers started, and the way Buttler finished the innings was, you know, the turning point of the match I think," Shakib said at the post-match media conference on Saturday (June 8).
"That's been their pattern for the last two, three years, by building up to this World Cup. So, they are not changing in this World Cup the way their approach was going for the last two, three years. We knew that it's always going to be tough for us. We knew that we had to take wickets at regular intervals in order to keep the momentum down, which we couldn't do today. I think that's why we lost the match.
"I thought anything between 320 to 330 was something we could have to feel much comfortable. I think we had two wickets down and 30 overs, 180 on the board. From there on, you can think of chasing something like 320, 330, if you keep wickets in hand. But 380 was always against our chase or favour," he added.
Though Bangladesh lost, Shakib's fine run at the World Cup continued as he registered his third successive fifty-plus score, with his latest being a 119-ball 121. This century came after he was promoted to the number 3 position on the batting line-up. "It is different. You need to face some different challenges. But I'm enjoying at this moment," said Shakib about batting at No. 3. "But having said that, you know, just the start, I need to contribute as much as I can with both bat and ball. I thought it's a better opportunity for me, you know, to contribute more with the bat. At this moment, I'm enjoying, but having said that, you know, there are plenty more matches in this tournament and after that."
Feature image courtesy: AFP Photo
