Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Bangladeshi batsman Sakib al Hasan is seen batting during their Indian Premier League final against Chennai Super Kings in Mumbai on Sunday. — Courtesy BCCI photo
Bangladesh cricketers spoke too much about Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan because media asked too many questions about him, observed all-rounder Sakib al Hasan ahead of three-match Twenty20 international series between the teams.
Sakib returned home on Monday after the Indian Premier League final for Sunrisers Hyderabad, where Rashid was his team-mate.
The Afghanistan leg-spinner played every game for Sunrisers this season just like Sakib and together they played a vital role in taking the team to the final.
However, shortly after returning from IPL, Sakib played down the Rashid factor in the bilateral series, putting the blame on media for focusing too much on Rashid ahead of the series.
‘Who were asking the questions about Rashid? If you guys ask the players about him only then they are giving a reply. Or do they discuss about him on their own?’ Sakib asked reporters at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.
‘Whatever it is, everyone is a good bowler. Whoever plays international cricket he is a good bowler. So, some will bowl well, some will not. A good batsman will handle it well and it’s the basic thing,’ he added.
Sakib, who will lead Bangladesh in the series, has no hesitation to accept that Afghanistan will start the series as favourites because of their better position in Twenty20 rankings.
‘I think in Twenty20s none can have the tag of the favourites. Any team can defeat others at any time. However, as Afghanistan are two places ahead of us in the ranking, I will say them favourites,’ he said.
Sakib had a decent run in this year’s IPL, where he featured in all 17 matches to pick up 14 wickets at an economy of 8.00 and score 239 runs at an average of 21.72 – his best performance so far in an IPL season.
Sakib claimed that he was personally satisfied with both his and his team’s overall performances but revealed that he could have done even better if he did not fail in converting some of his starts.
‘It was good but could be better,’ he said.
‘Overall I’m satisfied with the result of the team as well as for my personal perspective. But I have a dissatisfaction that despite having good starts in most of the matches, I failed to convert them into a big score,’ he added.
The Tigers will leave Dhaka today for Delhi before travelling to Dehradun on the same day in a domestic flight.
Sakib will join the side squad in Dehradun on Thursday.
Opener Tamim Iqbal, who is currently in England to play a charity match for ICC World XI against West Indies at Lord’s on May 31, will join the team straight in Dehradun after the match.
The matches of the series will be held at the newly-constructed Rajeev Gandhi International Stadium from June 3 to 7.
Source: New Age.