Conquering Mount Everest may not enthrall the Nepalese as it is a common occurrence in their country, but conquering anything on the cricket field definitely gives them a similar feeling to what people experience when they scale the highest peak in the world. The hurdle they must overcome when they meet Bangladesh in the quarterfinal of the ICC Under-19 World Cup at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur today may be their Everest.
The Himalayan country initiated the first upset of the tournament by beating New Zealand before defeating Ireland to book a place in the quarterfinals. A loss to India in the final group game may have dampened their spirits, but the home side’s strength was evidenced in the group stage, which transformed them into strong contenders for the trophy.
Cautious Bangladesh Under-19s captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz made it clear to the media yesterday that Bangladesh want to make history in the mega tournament, and after having reached so far they would not like to dash any hopes.
“If we can win the match against Nepal it will be a big achievement because we have never made it to the semifinals of this tournament before. We have reached a stage where there are no second chances, so we will be careful and determined. At this stage, there’s no way you can show any mercy,” said a confident Miraz.
Bangladesh had achieved their best finish with players like Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal when they finished fifth in 2006, but under the leadership of Miraz the current team seems to have scaled new heights in terms of ability and form, but they have a bigger goal in mind.
“Reaching the quarterfinals is an inspiration for us. Earlier the Musfiq [Mushfiqur Rahim] bhai-led team were also in a good position and now we are also in a good position, but we don’t want to miss the opportunity to get the big prize. We won’t do anything new against Nepal; we’ll just follow our processes,” he said, adding that there was no scope to take Nepal lightly because they played good cricket to reach the quarterfinal.
Coach Mizanur Rahman however felt the need for the opening batsmen to improve their performance and said that they had worked on that aspect.
“We are not thinking too much about our opponents. We are focusing on our job and we believe if the boys can do their job properly the result will automatically come our way,” Mizanur said.
When asked if there was any pressure due to rising expectations, Mizanur replied in the negative and said that Bangladesh have been preparing for their big ambitions since this group of youngsters came together. “Today’s picture had been painted one-and-a-half-years ago, so they are not too excited and are not taking any pressure.”
