Bangladesh are hopeful of a strong comeback in the ongoing ICC World Cup after a poor start saw them lose five games in the tournament. Bangladesh’s qualification for the 2025 Champions Trophy is at stake as the ICC announced that the top seven sides at the end of the league stage will qualify for the tournament along with hosts Pakistan.
Bangladesh are currently placed ninth in the league table and are scheduled to take on Pakistan in their next game on October 31 before facing Sri Lanka and Australia. “Apart from the Champions Trophy, finishing higher on the table is a goal,” Shakib told reporters ahead of the game against Pakistan. “We haven’t performed up to expectations. If we can still get some good results, we can be slightly satisfied and then reflect on how we can do better.”
Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hassan held several meetings with the Tigers after their disappointing loss to Netherlands as it pretty much killed their slender hopes of making it to the semifinal. “We discussed it in our team meetings. We talked about overcoming this situation. We have to show it in action. Talk is cheap when it’s not working. We will do it in the ground so that everyone can see what we are doing,” Shakib said.
“We felt bad on that day (after losing to Netherlands). But we have to look forward, which everyone tried to do. We did what can make things better. We can change the situation of the team with our actions. We are here to play the World Cup. Every match is as important as it gets. We will take one game at a time. We don’t think about anything else other than performing to the best of our ability.”
Shakib added that every individual will need to make their own plans to get back into form and only then they can showcase collective results which he feels is currently required for them to get over the lean patch. “Only an individual can bring himself back to form,” he remarked. “First you have to perform individually and then it happens collectively. It is up to the individual to motivate himself. I want to perform as well. I am trying to find out.
“Individuals have different ways of thinking. Some like to talk about their process. Some want to talk about their technique or their mentality when they were batting. When a batter or bowler does well, they try to remind themselves what process works for them. A player not doing well will forget the process despite doing it repeatedly.”