Shakib wants calm as mind games ensue

Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan was in a confident mood during the press conference yesterday, a day ahead of the Tigers' second Super 12 game of the T20 World Cup against South Africa in Sydney. The mind games were at play from both sides, with Lungi Ngidi of South Africa also having his say before the game.

"It is a very important game for us because we will go out to win the match. But for South Africa, it is an even more important match since they expected to get one more point than they did in the previous game," Shakib continued.

"Since they didn't, it is a life and death game for them and, if not anything else, they will be under a bit of pressure. In that regard, we have won a match.

"Sydney is a ground where we would like to play any opponent. Among wickets in Australia, there is a bit more help for spinners [in Sydney] than the other grounds, although the ICC produces true wickets for World Cups so that there is some balance," the Bangladesh skipper went on the front foot, playing up South Africa's difficulty in the game and reminding them that they do, in fact, need a result.

Bangladesh usurped Netherlands in their first game on Monday and the confidence-boost would work its way to having a level-headed approach in the South Africa game today. The bowlers turned up and were well backed by the fielding department. However, the batting is still a concern for Shakib's side with a lot more expected off the middle-order. Whether Bangladesh continue to feature the same setup -- comprising four specialist bowlers against the Proteas -- remains to be seen but Shakib was in favour of going in with an open mind.

Soumya Sarkar and Najmul Hossain Shanto gave the required start in the last match, and the Tigers will be hoping to start on the front foot.

"It's not important for us how many runs are on the scoreboard, rather the approach is important. Everyone should play with an open mind and perform. Whoever is in the team, if they can play to their potential then something good can happen," a confident Bangladesh skipper further said.

Meanwhile, Ngidi reminded the pressure 'was equal' for both sides when the pacer was asked to remark on Shakib's statement in the earlier press conference.

"I think everyone is under pressure in this tournament if you are looking to win. Their claim that we will be hungry to win, that's definitely true. Obviously, we would have loved a win in the first game and we know now what pressure we have in terms of going forward in the tournament.

"But to say we are under more pressure, I would say it's pretty equal if you are looking to win the World Cup. So you know, may the best team win," Ngidi said.

Previously, Bangladesh won the 2019 World Cup fixture against South Africa and also won the recent ODI series in South Africa. While Shakib wanted to take confidence from those instances, Ngidi revealed that the Proteas look to dismantle the Tigers' top order.

"The last time we played Bangladesh, their batsman came out very aggressive against us so we are very cognisant of that fact. So, we will definitely be targeting the top-order.

"As a bowling unit, we are definitely looking to cut the head of the snake, which is to take out their top-order and restrict them to as low a total as possible," Ngidi added.

Both teams are set to approach the game with their own plans but it will be execution and a bit of luck that can make the difference following the pressure-passing attempts from the two camps yesterday.