Shanto ‘sorry’ for letting down the fans

Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto apologised on behalf of his team after the Tigers' ended their campaign in the ICC T20 World Cup with a defeat against Afghanistan in St. Vincent today.

The Tigers ended the Super Eight stage winless, losing to Australia, India and Afghanistan. Earlier in the first round, they won against Sri Lanka, the Netherlands and Nepal and lost to South Africa.

With three wins in seven games, this has been Bangladesh's most fruitful outing in T20 World Cups till now.

However, after losing out on an opportunity to make it to the semifinals and a lacklustre showing in batting throughout the campaign, the Bangladesh skipper apologised to the fans.

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"About our entire run in the World Cup, I would say that as a team we have disappointed our fans. We have let down the people who always follow our matches. So, on behalf of my team, I apologise," Shanto said after the match against Afghanistan.

"As a batting group, we weren't able to deliver. We feel sorry for that. In future, we will try to come out of it," he added.

Rishad Hossain's performance was a highlight for Bangladesh in the tournament. The legs-spinner ended the campaign with 14 wickets in seven matches, the most for a Bangladeshi bowler in T20 World Cups.

Shanto said that the performances of Rishad and other bowlers were a positive for the Tigers but collectively, Bangladesh failed to deliver in the tournament.

"The bowlers did really well. Coming into a tournament like this, Rishad bowled well in every match. There are quite a few positives. But in batting, we have disappointed our fans. We have hurt the people of the country.

"Still, I want to say that there was no shortage of efforts. All of us gave our hundred percent. Everyone did their work with honesty. But at the end of the day, we couldn't deliver. That's why, I want to say sorry on behalf of the team."