Women's Asia Cup: Bangladesh Team's Goals and Preparations

The Bangladesh women's cricket team is set to depart for Sri Lanka today to participate in the Women's Asia Cup. Ahead of their departure, captain Nigar Sultana Jyoti spoke to the media, outlining the team's goals and aspirations for the tournament.

In 2018, the Bangladesh women's team made history by defeating India to win the Asia Cup. Nigar believes that this victory will serve as an inspiration for the team. She stated, "The Asia Cup holds a special place in our hearts. Winning the Asia Cup in 2018 brought a significant revolution to women's cricket in Bangladesh."

With the T20 World Cup scheduled to be held in Bangladesh in October, Nigar sees the Asia Cup as a vital opportunity to prepare. "This is a huge opportunity for us to fine-tune our skills before the World Cup. Our last two series did not go well, as we did not win a single match. However, we had a long break and played domestic cricket during this time. Those who performed well in domestic cricket are in the team now. Everyone is in good form, and we are eager to play good cricket," she said.

Nigar emphasized that the team's initial goal is to reach the semifinals. "We couldn't make it to the semifinals in the last Asia Cup. Naturally, our first goal this time is to reach the semifinals. Our first match is very important because we haven't been performing well for a while. We have seen some individual performances, but we haven't performed well as a team. To gain momentum, we want to start strong in our first match against Sri Lanka," she explained.

The return of experienced players Jahanara Alam and Rumana Ahmed is expected to strengthen the team. Nigar expressed confidence in their impact, stating, "Experience always matters. Both of them have played in the last two Asia Cups. Rumana is returning after a long break, as is Jahanara. Both performed exceptionally well in the last domestic tournament. I believe these two experienced players will have a significant impact on the team. We have seen them leveraging their experience in the practice matches, which will be beneficial for the team."

The team's recent struggles, particularly in batting, have been acknowledged by the captain. "Batting has been a visible issue for us. We are all working on it together. There is no problem with the players' skills. Sometimes things work out, and sometimes they don't. Some players perform well in the first match of a tournament but can't maintain that performance in subsequent matches. We are working on this consistency, and now we have to see how well we can translate it into our performance," Nigar concluded.

The Bangladesh team is determined to make a strong start in the Asia Cup and build momentum as they aim for a successful campaign leading up to the T20 World Cup.