After losing the opportunity to boost their net run rate against Hong Kong on Thursday, Bangladesh batter Towhid Hridoy defended their strategy by saying that they ‘stuck to the demands of the situation’ and stated that they had played ‘smart cricket’.
But a day after that seven-wicket win, Bangladesh failed miserably to replicate their previous performance, as they were crushed to a six-wicket defeat by Sri Lanka at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
The Liton Das-led team managed only 139-5 in 20 overs before Sri Lanka chased that down with six wickets and 32 balls in hand.
After losing two openers for no runs in the first two overs, it was up to Liton and Towhid to rebuild. But the latter’s run-out further worsened the situation as the Tigers slipped to 11-3 in 4.3 overs.
Towhid went for a third run after completing the first one slowly, which made the decision questionable. Kamil Mishara’s direct hit from deep square leg ended his stint.
Given that the middle-order batter just survived a straightforward catch, Towhid’s decision to go for a third run in that situation was suicidal.
Bangladesh had to send Mahedi Hasan early inside the powerplay, which didn’t work that well either. And when Liton fell while trying a premeditated reverse sweep off Wanindu Hasaranga in the 10th over, Bangladesh were 53-5.
The last recognised pair, Jaker Ali and Shamim Hossain, finished the innings with their unbroken stand of 86 from 61, but that wasn’t enough.
 But Jaker later said that losing too many wickets early made their job more difficult.
‘Patwari [Shamim] and I tried to take as much as possible. If we had more wickets in hand, maybe we could have taken more risks,’ said Jaker, who made 41 off 34.
Jaker also claimed that their team lacked pre-planning and focus.
‘That is something they can answer better,’ Jaker said while asking a question about their approach to batting in the powerplay.
‘But I feel if we had made a proper plan and been a little more focused as a batting unit at the start, it would have been better. Batting unit means everyone.
‘Just because I played well or Patwari played well does not mean only we did well. Together we batted poorly, and together we lost,’ he added.
Bangladesh went into the match with a lot of confidence, as they beat Sri Lanka in a bilateral series in July.
However, Sri Lanka came with a better plan, and their bowlers, especially the pacers, executed those really well.
Jaker said that their top-order batters needed to take more responsibility.
‘I believe that the opener and the No 3 batter are very important for our team. We are very mindful of this,’ he said.
‘They must be cautious in this regard. But that does not mean they have to go for fours and sixes with every ball in the powerplay. Drop and run and rotating strike – these things should be in mind. I am sure they will think about it and do better in the next match.’
Mustafizur Rahman struck early in the Sri Lanka innings before Mishara was dropped on one by Mahedi off Shoriful.
He went on to make an unbeaten 46 off 32 and was eventually adjudged player of the match.
And that put Bangladesh under a lot of pressure before going against Afghanistan on September 16.
However, Jaker, who had stated before the tournament that they would go for the championship, didn’t want to lose hope.
‘There is no question of giving up hope. We will play to win. We went into this match with that mentality, but it did not happen. In the next match also, we will play with the mentality to win,’ he said.
‘There is no other way. We did not come to the tournament just to play matches. We came to be champions. Losing one game does not mean losing hope. We will definitely play to win,’ he added.