‘Our goals are World Cup-oriented’ - Taskin Ahmed not focused on fan talk, sets sights on T20 World Cup

Bangladesh are well settled in their ongoing T20I series against Zimbabwe; being 3-0 up, the side have the T20I series secured. However, the fans are not impressed, due to the positive results coming against a team like Zimbabwe. The fans have come up with the theory that the BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board) organises matches with lower-ranked sides whenever they are going through a bad patch.

Star pacer Taskin Ahmed is aware of the talks going on between the fans; however, he opined that the players have been paying no attention to them. Ahmed stated that Bangladesh will be focusing on winning the remaining games of the series and continuing their buildup to the T20 World Cup.

"Our goals are World Cup-oriented but we don't control what conditions we play in or against which opposition we play, we have to give our best in all conditions. If we can get into the World Cup with five or ten per cent improvement, we can then start well in that tournament. There's a lot of talk about Zimbabwe as an opponent but if we lose against them, there will be a lot of other talk,” Taskin Ahmed was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. 

"We get less credit for winning against smaller teams. If we lose, they will mock us. Unfortunately, we have to hear a lot of things. When we get out to play, our only goal is to give our best. We want to win the last two games,” he added.

I struggled with my rhythm: Taskin Ahmed

It is worth noting that Taskin Ahmed has been in excellent form for Bangladesh in the Zimbabwe series. Taking six wickets in three games at an average of 8.83 while returning an economy rate of just 4.41, Ahmed’s performance has seen Zimbabwe’s top-order left without any answer. 

"I was quite sore in the [2023] World Cup. I had to do two-and-a-half months of rehab, after which I started with the BPL this year. I struggled with my rhythm in that tournament, but it improved in the Sri Lanka series. Rhythm is a factor for fast bowlers,” Ahmed said.