Nigar Sultana stresses on importance of beating Scotland | ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, 2024

Bangladesh lock horns with Scotland in the first game of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 in Sharjah on October 3. Bangladesh have not won a single game in the marquee event since 2014, and skipper Nigar Sultana believes that a win over Scotland will get the team dreaming of something bigger.

“We want to win the first match. It will be a huge achievement for the team. The team will get into a flow when that happens. We can then dream of something bigger. We are hungry for it,” Sultana said, according to ESPNCricinfo.

“Scotland, though, are playing good cricket. Generally teams arrive at the World Cup with a lot of expectations. They won’t let you win easily. They don’t give up without a fight. We are mentally prepared to face those challenges.

“I have played four World Cups but we have never won a game in those editions. The last time we won was in the 2014 tournament [against Sri Lanka]. We have played well in previous editions but playing well only means something when you can win.”

Bangladesh will also be up against England, South Africa and West Indies in Group B and Sultana believes if her side are to play the semi-finals, they have to go past all of them. “To play in the semi-final, we have to win against those three teams, too,” Sultana said. 

“We have different plans against each team. If we can execute our gameplan, then it will good for us. We have defeated South Africa in T20Is [twice in 13 completed matches]. We rarely meet England, only in World Cups, so it might be difficult for them, too. We all know that we have a good spin attack.”

Bangladesh were initially to host the tournament, but the violence due to the political turmoil in the country, saw it being moved to the UAE. Sultana believes that it is key to adapt quickly. 

“For a long time, we prepared with the understanding that the World Cup will be held at home,” Sultana said. “It is not in our control, so there’s no point thinking about it anymore. We played in Abu Dhabi in 2021, where the wickets were nice. Sharjah is a new venue for us, but we will play two practice matches, which will give us some idea.

“Other teams will face similar challenges, so the faster we can adapt to those challenges, it will help us play better in the tournament’s main matches.”

She also admits batting is a concern, and to ratify that, Bangladesh have included a couple of new talents like the uncapped Taj Nehar and Shathi Rani, who has played five T20Is ahead of someone as experienced as Rumana Ahmed.

“Batting is definitely a concern but we saw some improvements among the batters during the ‘A’ team tour [of Sri Lanka],” she said. 

“We still believe that we can do well as most of our players have also done well in the domestic tournaments. I hope they continue their form in the World Cup.

“We included Taj for the middle-order, although she doesn’t have experience. We saw her in the league [Women’s National Cricket League] where she showed good approach and intent. She can play the big shots. If you have followed our recent international matches, we failed in showing intent. Shathi was the highest run-getter in the league. 

“She can go after the bowling, and you can see those in some of her innings. She can use the powerplay quite well. She has proved herself to come at this stage.”

Speaking of the spin department, left-arm spinner Nahida Akter and leg-spinner Rabeya Khan form a strong line-up. 

“Rabeya is one of our finest bowlers. She has taken our team to a different level through her contributions in both formats. She is a great fielder. She is good with the bat too but doesn’t take batting seriously. She is maturing slowly. If there’s someone I rely with the ball in tough situations after Nahida, it is definitely Rabeya,” Sultana concluded.

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