BSS, Dhaka :
Bangladesh stand-in captain Litton Das said the bowlers’ superb form gave him the confidence to sweep West Indies in the T20 International series for the first time.
The Tigers won the first match by seven runs and the second one by 27 runs in a low-scoring affair on slow pitch. But they crushed West Indies in the third and final match by 80 runs on a batting favourable pitch, which suited well for a West Indies side full of power hitters.
Jaker Ali Anik blasted a 41 ball-72 not out as Bangladesh racked up 189-7 and then wrapped up West Indies for 109 in 16.4 overs for a big victory to sweep the series.
“We know we have a very good bowling wicket and if we score well, we have the bowling to defend,” Litton said after the match.
“I mean the way our bowler shows the character is amazing because they (West Indies) have a better batting order at the moment. They have amazing power hitters but we defended 180 and defeated them by 109 runs.”
The two-match Test series between the two sides ended in a 1-1 draw before Bangladesh were whitewashed in their favourite ODI format.
However, they now reversed the result in West Indies’ favourite format to take a sweet revenge.
“It is a big achievement for the bowling team. As you see we have played well in test cricket and ODI also. Unfortunately, we did not win the matches but we played good cricket,” Litton remarked.
“So we had that confidence of playing all the series very well. I always tell the boys don’t take pressure Just come and enjoy the game. Phil Simmons (head coach) never gave any pressure. We just feel free to play cricket. I explained our decision and everything. Not only he, but all the coaching staff and management people were really well. They are very helpful to us and they always give us things. “
He believes that their superior bowling attack won them the series.
“We are improving day by day. If you saw the first game and the second game, this wicket was pretty good to bat on. But they thrived in here well.”
West Indies captain Rovman Powell blamed their ordinary bowling for the crushing defeat in the third match, which they aimed to win for a consolation victory and avoid the series sweep.
“In the middle over we bowled pretty well, in the power play we did not control and at the backend. It’s just wickets in clusters, if we lose wickets in the first and second over, you are always going to struggle,” Powell said.
“This has been the case for the last eight matches or so. We have some time to correct them now. We don’t come together until maybe May 2025 and guys have the time to review and correct the little mistakes. Hopefully, in 2025, the little mistakes can be corrected. Bangladesh has been fantastic, after the ODI series, they have been very good.”
