After edging past Sri Lanka in the first match of the Super Four stage of the ongoing Asia Cup, Saif Hassan believes Bangladesh can reach the final. That said, he also emphasised the importance of taking a one-match-at-a-time approach.
In a last-over thriller in Dubai, Bangladesh clinched victory against Sri Lanka by chasing down a target of 169. Saif was the top scorer for Bangladesh. Opening the batting, the right-handed batter scored 61 and received solid support from Towhid Hridoy, who also scored a fifty, as they reached the target with four wickets to spare.
“Yes, definitely we are confident of reaching the final,” said Saif after the win. “Before coming here, everyone believed that we would play in the final. We are one step ahead, and there are still two more matches for us. Our next focus is only on the next match.”
On what appeared to be a good batting surface, Bangladesh did well to restrict Pakistan to under 170. Mustafizur Rahman, Bangladesh’s most successful T20I pacer, took 3 for 20 in his spell. Saif praised the ‘world-class’ Mustafizur for his ability to deliver in crunch moments.
“Mustafizur Bhai’s bowling is always good. He has been in very good shape for the last few months. Today, he conceded very few runs and took wickets at vital moments. He is a world-class bowler, so these situations are easier for him. You can see that whenever he bowls, the team is usually in a crisis, and he always steps in during key moments — and delivers most of the time. So, I think he is a match player who has a significant impact during the team’s critical situations,” Saif said.
Next up, Bangladesh are set to face India for the first time this year at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, 24 September.
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