Coach Sridharan Sriram reckoned that Bangladesh are highly confident after giving India a run for their money in the previous Super 12 match at the Adelaide Oval. Liton Das played a sparkling 27-ball knock of 60, but his efforts went in vain as the Tigers lost by five runs (DLS Method) after being set a revised target of 151 in 16 overs.
Sriram, who himself is a former Indian cricketer, mentioned that the Tigers were dejected after not being able to beat the Men in Blue. But he also said that the Bangladesh players gained a lot of self-belief given how they fought against Rohit Sharma’s men.
Bangladesh are set to take the field on Sunday, November 6 in their must-win clash against Babar Azam’s Pakistan.
“At the start of the game [against India], if someone said we would lose to India by five runs, anybody will take it. I think we got ourselves an opportunity to beat India. But we were not able to cross the line. The boys gained a lot of confidence by having got so close,” Sriram was quoted as saying.
“Everyone was disappointed in the dressing room to have lost by five runs. They realised what a golden opportunity they missed. It is a great learning for them. It gives the team a lot of self-belief that if we can challenge a team like India, we are not far away,” he stated.
Bangladesh recently played against the Men in Green in two matches on New Zealand soil. However, they ended up losing both matches and failed to advance to the final of the T20I tri-series.
“We know what challenges Pakistan present. We played them in New Zealand recently. We have to turn up and play our best on the day. They are a very good side. We had opportunities in both games that we played against them in New Zealand. We are both aware of each other’s strengths. It will be a great contest tomorrow,” Sriram added.
