NIGAR SULTANA: BANGLADESH ARE READY TO BOUNCE BACK AFTER AUSTRALIA DEFEAT
Media release
- Bangladesh skipper backs team to respond to Australia loss
- World’s No.10 ranked side will aim to play positive cricket against familiar opponent in Pakistan
- Pakistan are still seeking their first win after a narrow loss to South Africa last time out
Nigar Sultana insists Bangladesh have what it takes to get back to winning ways at the first attempt when they face Pakistan at the Hampshire Bowl on Saturday.
Having beaten the Netherlands by six wickets in their opening match at the 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, the Tigresses had their progress checked by Australia last time out as Sophie Molineux led her side to a nine-wicket victory.
And while the Bangladesh captain is aware of the pressure on her charges to pick up a second win in their quest to make the knockout stages, the 28-year-old explained her side are embracing the opportunity rather than fearing it.
“Whenever we play against Pakistan, we try to play good cricket, and our winning percentage against them is relatively high,” said Nigar. “From that perspective, I would say that batting responsibly is going to be very important for us now. We will be playing at a new venue, so adapting to the wicket will also be a factor.
“But what I believe is that, given our strong record, if we want to bounce back as a team, staying positive will be extremely important. The [Australia] match is already behind us, so rather than focussing on the negatives, if we can carry forward the positives into the next game, it will help us. I believe this team has the ability to bounce back.”
A key factor in both of Bangladesh’s results has been their performances in the powerplays.
Bangladesh were 40 for two after the opening six overs in their successful chase against the Netherlands while in contrast, they could only post a score of 22 for three at the same stage when batting first against Australia.
And Nigar believes that getting the top order back firing during the first six overs will give Bangladesh the best chance of winning.
“Scoring runs in the powerplay is extremely important, whether you're batting first or chasing,” she continued. “It is a very important phase of the game because if you fail to put enough runs on the board during the first six overs, it creates pressure on the entire team. Those lost runs are often very difficult to make up for later in the innings.
“The batters currently playing in our top order have the ability to bounce back. They performed well against the Netherlands, which shows their capability. I hope they go into the match against Pakistan with the same mindset and positive intent. If they do, it will have a significant impact on our team's performance.”
Pakistan meanwhile are still without a point at this World Cup following defeats to India and South Africa in their first two matches.
Fatima Sana’s team did however give an excellent account of themselves against the latter of those two opponents as the 2023 and 2024 runners-up only snuck home by two wickets after the Pakistan’s skipper’s stellar all-round display.
While Pakistan can take lots of positives from the performance against South Africa, bowling coach Umaid Asif knows they need to start producing wins soon.
He said: “Every game is a must-win when you come to this kind of a World Cup. So, we're going to try to win that one (against Bangladesh) as well. We take things one game at a time and we go to Hampshire and we will plan accordingly.”