WI Vs BAN, 2018: Mashrafe Mortaza Rues Missed Opportunity of Sealing ODI Series

Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza rued the fact that it was pretty disappointing to not being able to hold their nerves and complete a series victory in the Caribbean during the second One-day International (ODI) at Guyana.

The Bangladesh Tigers were on the verge of winning the three-match ODI series. Well, they were comfortably placed on 232 for three at one stage and looked in a commanding position.

It was a great batting performance by the visitors till then. They required just eight of the last seven deliveries with six wickets in hand. Eventually, Windies won by three runs to level the series one each.

It was Windies skipper Jason Holder, who defended just eight runs in the final over – to give the hosts a famous victory.

Mortaza reiterated it is always disappointing to lose a game from a winning position. They were pretty well placed to coast to a victory. However, they lost the close-knit affair in a terrible fashion.

“It was disappointing to lose such a game when you need 14 runs in 13 balls with six wickets in hand and ended up losing the game. It is more disappointing because it is not the first time we have lost a game from such a position as it has happened on quite a few occasions,” Cribuzz quoted Mortaza as saying.

Mashrafe Mortaza thinks whether it is a mental or technical issue:

“I am not sure whether it is mental or technical because it is tough to describe it. If we required 20 runs from 12 balls then it is a different thing. But when you need 14 runs from 13 balls and failed to do so it is hard to decide whether it is technical or mental,” he added.

 

“Honestly speaking we are making the same mistake. And I think we should have handled our nerves in a relaxed manner and ended the game with singles and twos,” he further said.

The leader will be very disappointed with Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim not finishing the game for yet another time. He was batting well set on 68.

Rahim was dismissed in the opening delivery of the final over which raised hopes for the winning team to come out on the top.

Shimron Hetmyer struck a brilliant 125 of 93 deliveries. It helped the hosts post a competitive total of 271 on the board.

“I think Mahmudullah run out was costly as we could have ended the game earlier. If he was around but at the same time the wicket of Sabbir Rahman was also crucial,” the Bangladeshi ODI captain, Mashrafe Mortaza said.

 

“There was some dew as well, but suddenly ball was turning. In the last over we couldn’t finish it off. The way they played was really good, but we should’ve been more clinical in our finish,” he added.

 

“Our fielding was not up to the mark, we dropped catches, conceded 24 doubles. We have one game to go and hopefully we can cover it up in the next match,” he concluded.