Nasum’s over changed the match: Mosaddek
Bangladesh suffered a 10-run defeat against Zimbabwe in the third Twenty20 International in Harare and subsequently lost the three-match series 2-1.
When asked about the reason behind the defeat, stand-in skipper Mosaddek Hossain said that the 15th over of the Zimbabwe innings bowled by Nasum Ahmed changed the complexion of the match and was the main reason behind Bangladesh suffering its first ever series defeat in T20Is against Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe were struggling on 76-6 after 14 overs when Mosaddek handed the ball to Nasum.
Ryan Burl then unleashed a wave of big hits, depositing the ball over the boundary ropes four times in a row, then hitting a one-bounce four and ending the over with another six to score a total of 34 runs from just six deliveries.
This is the most expensive over ever from a Bangladeshi bowler in T20Is and the third most expensive overall.
Burl and Luke Jongwe’s partnership took Zimbabwe to a fighting total and also swung the momentum of the match.
The Bangladesh innings lost its way from the start with Afif Hossain and Mahedi Hasan showing a glimmer of hope late down the order but in the end it proved to be too little too late.
In the post-match press conference Mosaddek didn’t hide his disappointment.
“Definitely, I’m disappointed. After the first 14 overs, we were ahead in the match. One over made the difference in this game. If Nasum had conceded even 20 runs in that over, we would’ve still been in the match.”
Mosaddek, however, still defended Nasum, “We have to show faith on our frontline bowlers. I also kept my faith on him. These things happen in T20s.”
Chasing 157 in Harare was not an improbable task, accepted Mosaddek.
“Definitely, it was a very good batting wicket. We should’ve chased down 157. We couldn’t do it due to losing wickets in quick succession. It gets difficult when you lose wickets in clusters.”
Bangladesh and Zimbabwe will next take part in a three-match One-Day International (ODI) series. Similar to the West Indies tour, where Bangladesh were outplayed in Tests and T20Is but bounced back with a series win in ODIs, Mosaddek feels the team will come back strongly in the 50-over format.
“Everyone knows that we play well in ODIs. We will try our utmost to bounce back.”