Abu Dhabi, Sep 12 (IANS) Middle-order batter Towhid Hridoy has defended Bangladesh’s approach during their chase against Hong Kong in their Asia Cup opener, insisting that his side was more focussed on winning the game rather than focusing on net run-rate.

Skipper Litton Das starred with a fluent 59 off 39 balls as Bangladesh registered their first-ever T20I win over Hong Kong by cruising to a seven-wicket victory in their Asia Cup Group B game at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium on Thursday.

Chasing 144, Litton Das’ partnership of 95 off 69 balls for the third wicket with Towhid Hridoy (35 not out) helped Bangladesh reach the target with 14 balls to spare.

“We could have finished the game earlier but we stuck to the demand of the situation. Our mentality is to always win,” said Hridoy. “We wanted to ensure that the match doesn’t slip away from us. We tried to end the game early but I couldn’t connect the ball that well. I think the result is more important than finishing one or two overs earlier.”

“We want to beat Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, so run-rate isn’t what we are worried about at this stage. We don’t want to complicate matters so early in the tournament,” he said.

“I think we played smart cricket. We could have finished two or three overs earlier, but we could have lost one or two more wickets. We must prioritise partnerships. We tried to hit more boundaries, but it didn’t happen,” he added.

Run rate turned into a topic of discussion following Afghanistan’s 94-run triumph over Hong Kong. With Sri Lanka also in the mix, run-rate could prove to be a crucial factor in case three teams find themselves level on points at the end of the group stage.

To go above Afghanistan’s NRR of 4.70, Bangladesh needed to reach the target in less than 12 overs.

–IANS

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