Hridoy defends Bangladesh’s approach following criticism about failing to finish the run-chase quicker against Hong Kong.
Hridoy hits back at critics as Bangladesh opt for safety over speed.
In defence of Bangladesh’s strategy during their chase against Hong Kong, Towhid Hridoy said that the objective was to play “smart cricket” and win first rather than concentrate on their net run-rate.
At the post-match press conference, Hridoy was asked repeatedly if the squad might have ended the game earlier, possibly as a statement of purpose, even though Bangladesh achieved the 144-run mark in 17.4 overs in their Asia Cup opener.
Hridoy makes staggering defense
“We wanted to ensure that the match doesn’t slip away from us,” Hridoy explained. “We tried to end the game early but I couldn’t connect the ball that well. I think the result is more important than finishing one or two overs earlier. You (the media) would have had something to say had we lost today.
“We could have finished the game earlier but we stuck to the demands of the situation. Our mentality is to always win. I think we played smart cricket. We could have finished two or three overs earlier, but we could have lost one or two more wickets. We must prioritise partnerships. We tried to hit more boundaries, but it didn’t happen.”
Captain Litton has his say
With 14 balls remaining, Bangladesh reached the target by batting at an average of 8.28 runs per over. They had to reach the target in less than 12 overs in order to surpass Afghanistan’s NRR of 4.70. During the presentation ceremony, Bangladesh’s skipper Litton Das stated that the pitch did not allow for regular big hitting and that they had to rotate their strike more due to the Abu Dhabi ground’s size.
“So, should we have gone to the ground to lose against Hong Kong? Our target was to win. Every team can have their day in T20s. Maybe we could have finished earlier had I struck a few more boundaries,” Hridoy said.
“We want to beat Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, so run-rate isn’t what we are worried about at this stage. We don’t want to complicate matters so early in the tournament.”