Bangladesh Takes on India Tomorrow to Kick-Off Women’s T20 WC

Encouraged by the success of the Under-19 team, the Bangladesh Women's Team is set to kick off its ICC Women's Twenty20 World Cup mission by taking on mighty India tomorrow (Monday) in Perth, Australia.

The match starts at 5 PM as per Bangladesh Standard Time.

The Under-19 team has recently won the World Cup, defeating India by three wickets at Potchefstroom in South Africa, and what Bangladeshi women's captain Salma Khatun said would motivate them.

“Our men’s U19 team showed what was possible when you combine determination, talent and hard work, and they are a massive inspiration for us ahead of this World Cup,” Salma said ahead of their first match against India.

“We are very proud of them and what they were able to do in South Africa but now we are looking to what we can do in Australia.”

Salma Khatun said that Bangladesh is aiming to hit the semi-finals for the first time, even though they have yet to win any match in this tournament in the previous two tournaments.

They are also drawn in a tough Group A that sees them face Australia, India, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka. Bangladesh, however, did never face off Australia and New Zealand in the International cricket.

Nevertheless, Bangladesh's optimism derived from their success in the warm-up game in which they defeated Pakistan by five runs before their first practice game against Thailand was rained down without a bowling ball.

In a bid to end their win drought in this tournament, Bangladesh took a long preparation this time, which included a conditioning camp in Australia’s tourism hub Gold Coast.

The Tigress arrived Gold Coast on February 3 and played two practice games against a local club where they claimed one game while the other was washed away by storms.

“We are very, very excited. The whole team is looking forward to the event as this is a massive stage and an opportunity for us to show that we can play some quality cricket,” Salma said.

“Since the last World Cup, there is more belief in our team. We have beaten some top teams and sides that are ranked above us in the past two years, there is a nice blend of experience and fresh talent. The core group has stayed together and that experience could prove vital.”

Salma emphasized on to keep the process right and play an aggressive brand of cricket in a bid to fight neck-to-neck with the top teams.

“If we can be competitive, aggressive and play without inhibition then we should have moments where we can get ourselves in advantageous positions. If we get our processes right then the result will take care of itself. Hard fight and competition until the very last ball – that’s all I ask of my team,” she remarked.

Salma also drew inspiration from the 2018 Asia Cup, in which they were winners, defeating India twice in the group and final stages.

“We have some of the top teams in the world in our group. But when you come to a tournament like this, you cannot think in terms of good and weak opponents. We won the Asia Cup in 2018 by believing in ourselves against all odds. We need to have the same mentality in the World Cup also,” she added.

“We came to Australia early to get acclimatized to the conditions which are alien to us. Only a couple of our players have some prior experience in Australia. We have had a camp in Gold Coast and now heading into the tournament, these are exciting times for us and everyone is motivated and confident.”

Source: BSS