Asia Cup final one of our biggest feats: Mushfiqur

Mirpur: Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim termed Bangladesh’s maiden entry into the final of the Asia Cup as one of their “biggest achievements” and was confident that the team would do one better and cross the last “hurdle”. “The final is one of the biggest achievements in our cricketing history. Hopefully we will cross that hurdle. It is a great boost to have the crowd supporting you,” Mushfiqur said after his side beat Sri Lanka to shut the door on India’s campaign in the tournament. With their five-wicket win here, Bangladesh continued their giant-killing act having beaten India last Friday, and the skipper was naturally delighted. “It has been a great tournament for us. Everyone chipped in. In the tough situations there are five or six people performing in every game, and hopefully, we will continue in the final.” [caption id=“attachment_250922” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Bangladesh’s Nasir Hossain, left, hugs teammate Mahmudullah, partly seen, to celebrate their win in the Asia Cup cricket match against Sri Lanka in Dhaka, Bangladesh. AP”]  [/caption] About the match, he said, “We had a stiff target after the rain, but Shakib (Al Hasan) and Tamim (Iqbal) batted well. Nazmul Hossain did well, that set up the game.” Mushfiqur also thanked the crowd for their unwavering support. “Thanks to the crowd… under pressure a big crowd behind gives big boost.” Man of the Match, Shakib called it a collective effort. “The way we expected our crowd to support us, they did exactly that. We have been consistent through the tournament. Hopefully we will put up a good show in the final.” “It’s a collective effort but Nazmul bowled really well upfront, he came back after two-three months, it is not easy to do well. Nasir and Mahmudullah played terrific innings, their partnership won us the game. We have found some players who can win matches for us.” Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene felt the score was not competitive and wayward bowling at a crucial phase did not help their cause. “We did not play to our potential, made quite a few mistakes, never got into a rhythm. We never got a competitive score,” he said. “We felt the wicket was much slower, it came on better after the rain. We had our opportunity when they were 135 for five, but some wayward bowling gave it away,” Jayawardene added. About the home team’s performance, the Lankan skipper said, “Bangladesh played very well today, they created opportunities from the start. It was a team effort from Bangladesh. (It’s) always going to be tough when you play Bangladesh at home.” PTI