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WHAT TO WATCH
Tigers to keep ‘feet on the ground’
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DHAKA ﻿Wednesday﻿ ﻿August﻿ ﻿4﻿, ﻿2021﻿, sraban 20, 1428 bs
Bangladesh scored only 131 runs in their innings but bowlers, led by Nasum Ahmed, skittled out Australia
for 108 to register their first T20I victory over the visitors.
photo:
FIROZ AHMED
Sports Reporter
It would appear that Bangladesh knew the opportunity to win the first-ever T20I fixture against an Australia side had surfaced, especially when they happen to be missing a few key players, the likes of -- Steve Smith, David Warner and Pat Cummins -- who have the experience of playing in the subcontinent due to their involvement in Indian Premier League.
Now looking back at this historic first-ever T20I win against Australia, it was hard to miss the fact that despite only managing to post 131 for 7, the Tigers had the belief of producing a bowling display capable enough to thwart the visitors on a slow and turning wicket under humid conditions. And in Nasum Ahmed they had found the exuberance and tenacity of youth required to materialise the momentous occasion of yesterday.
“We knew that it was possible to defend the runs we had put on the board as there was help from the wicket. We tried to execute [our plans],” Nasum said in a video message while replying to the media.
Nasum recalled being excited about the prospect of facing the Aussies at home and found himself in a position where the team trusted him. Having gone for plenty of runs in the final T20I against Zimbabwe last month, he came back to redeem himself with four wickets, including the crucial wicket of Mitchell Marsh who was threatening to cut loose.
“I was bowling in the nets the previous day and the coach called me and said you have a lot of responsibility as you are playing tomorrow. I was excited about what I was going to do if I played and also my bad bowling display in the last match played in my mind. When we put on 131 runs, [Mahmudullah] Riyad bhai said ‘we will fight with these runs and try to bowl dots and put an effort to win’. The four overs that I bowled, Shakib [Al Hasan] bhai and Riyad bhai talked me through. Riyad bhai even said ‘let him bowl like he wants to, he will do well’.”
Despite the overwhelming excitement, skipper Mahmudullah however emphasised on keeping their feet on the ground after clinching a 23-run victory. Mahmudullah, who had spoken of a clear plan ahead of the series in order to win, saw his team execute without panicking after posting a small total.
“We had a team talk [after the first innings] that we were 10 runs short, so we had to field well. It was outstanding. The hunger and energy was clearly there. The bowlers executed their plans really well. You need to have an attacking mindset with the ball early on, and that’s what we did,” Mahmudullah said.
“Now it’s time to focus on the next game and try to stay on top from the first ball while keeping our feet on the ground as well,” added a determined Mahmudullah.
SCORES IN BRIEF
Bangladesh:
131 for seven in 20 overs (Shakib 36, Naim 30, Afif 23, Mahmudullah 20; Hazlewood 3-24, Starc 2-33)
Australia:
108 all out in 20 overs(Marsh 45, Starc 14; Nasum 4-19, Mustafizur 2-16, Shoriful 2-19)
Result:
Bangladesh won by 23 runs.
Player-of-the-match: Nasum Ahmed