ICC World Cup 2019 | I was telling myself that I will do my best, reveals Mohammad Saifuddin
Mohammad Saifuddin was adamant that he truly believed he could get Bangladesh over the line and pull off a major upset by beating India when the two teams met at Edgbaston yesterday. The Bangladesh all-rounder remained unbeaten after scoring a fast-paced 51 off just 38 deliveries.
Bangladesh bowed out of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2019 after they succumbed to a disheartening 28-run defeat at the hands of the Virat Kohli-led India on Tuesday in Birmingham. Despite a valiant effort from the in-form Shakib Al Hasan and Mohammad Saifuddin, the Bangla tigers fell short of the target and fell out in the race for a semi-final spot as a result.
Saifuddin, who scored an unbeaten 38-ball 51, revealed that he desperately wanted to win the match for Bangladesh but feels gutted that he couldnāt take his team over the line.
''I always looked forward to this type of opportunity in which I can finish the game off for my team.I was connecting well today. I was confident that I will be able to pull this off but unfortunately, it didn't happen.
"Maybe I haven't guided my team to victory in any match at the international level, but I did it against South Africa in Chittagong at the Under-19 level. So, I was recalling that day again and again, and I hoped I would do that once again today. I was telling myself that I will do my best," Saifudding was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.
Over the last few months, Saifuddin has been battling with a back problem because of which Bangladesh's medical staff had to give him a painkiller during the course of the ongoing World Cup. The youngster was embroiled in the midst of a controversy surrounding his back injury. There were also speculations that he sat out of the game against Australia due to 'fear' of playing a big teamĀ thatĀ made the senior players in his dugout unhappy.
"It hurts. Few days ago, there was a rumour about me that I don't want to play against the big teams because of fear and for this I give excuses. This controversy heated me up. I wanted to win the match on my own against a big team and wanted to be the hero.
"This thought was in my mind from the first ball to last ball that I faced against India. I wanted to win the match and prove the rumour was wrong. [The loss felt] like a sky falling down over my head. It's natural to feel bad in this type of situation because we are out of the World Cup," the all-rounder added.