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Mahmudullah called for more trust on the team

Bangladesh lost to Scotland in the first match of the T20 World Cup qualifiers and faced harsh criticism. After losing to the Scots, the Tigers got worried about playing in the main round.

After the match The team had been subjected to criticism from all quarters, including Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hasan and other influential directors.

He made Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah Riyadh and Mushfiqur Rahim stand on the fence.

Bangladesh T20 captain Mahmudullah emphasized on the importance of constructive criticism at times when the team doesn’t perform.

Mahmudullah’s reaction was a riposte to the heavy criticism the Bangladesh team faced following defeat in their tournament opener against Scotland in Group B of the qualifying round.

Bangladesh had come into the T20 World Cup as the group favorites, but all hell broke loose following their six-run defeat against ICC associate team Scotland.

According to media reports, such was the backlash from the BCB chief that the team had to bring unexpected and illogical changes; Mushfiqur Rahim batting at No 8 in the Oman game was one of those.

Bangladesh in the next two games defeated Oman and Papua New Guinea on Tuesday and Thursday respectively and confirmed a berth in the Super 12 stage of the tournament.
Mahmudullah while attending the press conference following a record 84-run victory against PNG at Al Amerat Stadium Thursday was stiff with his words and called for more trust on the team, and treating the players with due respect.

“It is usual for me to behave firmly. We are also human and we can make mistakes. We represent the country and play for the country. We always think of the country’s expectation. I do not think anyone feels [the need of winning for the country] more than us. There will of course be criticism when we do not perform but one should not make us look low. We [the team] were hurt,” said Mahmudullah.

“Many questions were raised. Questions were raised on the strike rate of the three senior cricketers [Mahmudullah, Mushfiq and Shakib al Hasan]. It is not that we did not try and we have nothing to do more than trying. Everyone gave their 100%. We deserve criticism when do not deliver but we expect it to be healthy. That will benefit everyone.

“We wear the national jersey, so we do feel for the country. There are players playing with injuries and pain, having pain killers continuously. These are part of our daily life. No one actually knows what we deal with. So it is never right to question the team’s dedication.”

Bangladesh have secured a berth in the main event of the tournament after many permutations over the past few days but Mahmudullah believes the dressing room was always positive despite the external pressure.

“I believe we are a bit satisfied now. The atmosphere in the team was positive [despite all the pressure] and every member of the team should be credited for this,” said Mahmudullah.

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