West Indies beat Bangladesh in Monday’s series opener, putting the Tigers in a tight spot. The hosts must win the remaining two matches to clinch the series.
In the first match, Bangladeshi batsmen struggled against short-pitched bowling. They lost five wickets to the short ball.
“Playing short balls is a matter of great courage. It would have been a different case if it was a Test match. We have to play big shots. I would love to say there is nothing to fear,” Soumya told a press conference prior to the second T20I at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
“They bowled short and we tried to hit them. It is a matter of courage,” he said. “If we went on back foot and were dismissed, you could have said that there was some fear factor involved,” he added.
In the series opener, Bangladesh tumbled for 129. The touring side chased the target losing only two wickets as Shai Hope hit third fastest fifty in the T20I history.
“They are T20I champions. We are also trying to play like them. But what we did in the first match was perhaps a mistake,” Soumya said. “We charged at them at the very early stage. We would have scored more in the death overs if we had played their pacers more carefully at the beginning. We will try to not repeat this [mistake] in the next match.”