"We’ll give everything to win": Jaker Ali on do-or-die clash against Pakistan

Bangladesh lost their Asia Cup Super Four match as India won by 41 runs on Wednesday in Dubai. After keeping India to 168 runs, Bangladesh could only score 127 in reply. This win sent India to the final, while Bangladesh will face Pakistan in a do-or-die match on September 25.

Batting first, India scored 96 runs in the first 10 overs. Abhishek Sharma played very well, scoring 75 runs off 37 balls. But Bangladesh bowlers fought back in the last overs and limited India to 168 for six.

In reply, opener Saif Hassan gave Bangladesh some hope with 69 runs off 51 balls. But other batters could not score much, and Bangladesh were all out for 127. Now the Tigers have a big challenge ahead in their must-win game against Pakistan.

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Jaker Ali on the India Defeat

Regular skipper Litton Das sat out the game, and Jaker Ali Anik took over as captain. Speaking after the loss, Jaker said Bangladesh failed with the bat. “There’s no need to panic. We just didn’t play well with the bat,” he said. “In our last few games, we handled the middle overs well. Today, against their wrist-spinner and chinaman, we struggled. As a batting team, we didn’t do enough.”

He praised the bowlers for staying calm after India’s fast start. “In the powerplay, batters usually have the advantage. But our bowlers stayed calm. During the timeout, we talked about keeping focus. They bowled well in the later overs. There are good points to take from this match, and Inshallah, we’ll do better tomorrow.”

Looking Ahead to Pakistan

Earlier, Jaker had said Bangladesh aims for the title. Asked if that is still the plan, he said, “Yes. Even after losing to Sri Lanka, I said we came here to be champions. Tomorrow, we’ll play Pakistan with courage, aiming for the final and the trophy.”

On the do-or-die match against Pakistan, he added, “We have bowled well in the tournament and batted well in parts. To win, our batting has to do better. There’s no reason to lose hope. Pakistan also has a do-or-die game. We’ll give everything to win.”

About his dropped catch of Abhishek Sharma, Jaker said, “It was a simple catch and should have been taken. I tried, but it went down. It was a turning point because he scored quickly after that.”

He also talked about facing Pakistan, “We don’t think anyone is easy. We have played them in Pakistan and Bangladesh, so we know a little. But still, we have to play our best cricket.”