Mahmudullah takes the blame

Bangladesh T20 captain Mahmudullah lamented for the missed chances against West Indies that eventually cost the match.

On a difficult surface, Bangladesh managed to restrict the powerful West Indian batting line up for a relatively low total but in the end, the last over from Mustafizur Rahman proved costly where the left-armer conceded 19 as he was hit for three sixes.

Mahmudullah said, end of the day the target was just a little beyond their limit “The wicket was a bit difficult, the bounce was pretty low and the bowlers have adjusted to that. I think the bowlers did a decent job. If we grabbed the one of two chances we had, probably we could’ve restricted them for at least 10 runs less, which could’ve made the chase easier for us”, he said in the post-match press conference.

“We have tried, but could not make it. The game is such, in T20 often matches end up in close margins. Today we could not win”, he added.

Bangladesh lost three matches in the Super 12 round which virtually cancelled them out for the semifinals, but Mahmudullah thinks that they have something to prove in the next two matches,

“Still, we have many things to achieve. The chances for semifinals are very slim for us now, but we have two more matches left. If we can win these two games, it could bring some good for us. We are trying very hard; everyone is trying hard. Mistakes are happening, but we will try to win two remaining matches”, said Mahmudullah.

The skipper was there till the last moment but Andre Russel outfoxed Mahmudullah which he admits saying, “My partnership with Liton was good. If Liton had cleared the ropes instead of getting caught at the boundary, I think that would’ve given us a boost. That was the turning point. If two set-batsmen could stay in the last over, either of us could hit a boundary or a six.”

“I knew that Russel will deliver the ball in the block-hole, as four fielders were set in the leg side. He gave a nice yorker, I could not spoon it. I was thinking that if I made some room, I can play over mid-off or cover. It is my mistake; I could not execute” admits Mahmudullah.

Jason Holder also praised Russel for such a gem of a delivery in tensed situation, “The last ball that Russell bowled. Obviously, four runs, one ball to bowl the perfect yorker, which was a dot ball, was phenomenal. A lot of jubilation went through my veins especially, and then all the guys obviously played really well”, he said in the press conference after the match.

“So, yeah, that moment was the best moment for me. Let’s hope the next two games we can feel similarly,” he added.

Bangladesh is yet to win a single match in the main draw of T20 World cup since they defeated West Indies in 2007.

Another chance came against the same opposition but Bangladesh lost it by only three runs.

Earlier, Bangladesh suffered a close defeat against India in Bengaluru, in the previous edition of this tournament.

Seeking apology from the disheartened fans on behalf of the team, Mahmudullah said, “I’m very disappointed because we let them down. They have been supporting throughout all the games. So please, please keep supporting us, and inshallah, we’ll try to deliver some wins, inshallah”,

he said.