Bangladesh chief hits back at captain Mahmudullah after "belittling" claim

The president of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, Nazmul Hasan, has hit back at the country's captain Mahmudullah, insisting he never questioned the player's commitment after their shock defeat to Scotland at the T20 World Cup.

Scotland won the opening game of their tournament by six runs, with all-rounder Chris Greaves starring in a memorable victory over a full member nation.

Speaking after the game, Hassan was critical of Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib al Hasan, saying: ''A team can lose but the approach should be right.

"The approach and the attitude were not right. The way our batsmen batted, that included Shakib, Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah, we lost the match there.

"We will not be able to chase in this format if we display such batting. Every batsmen of this team knows about this. I think their approach and strategy were not right at all."

Bangladesh ultimately managed to secure qualification for the Super 12s, winning their next two games against Oman and Papua New Guinea comfortably.

Speaking after their win over Papua New Guinea, Mahmudullah responded to Hasan's criticism, saying: "We expect criticism when it is warranted, but if that is belittling, we feel bad.

"There were many questions, including about the three senior players' strike rate. We tried hard, but we didn't get the result.

"Everyone makes sacrifices. We play with injuries. Some of us take painkillers every day. Many don't know about these things, so it is not right to talk about our commitment.

"I hope we can be more settled now. Within the team, there is positive energy, and for that, I thank the whole team. I hope things will get better."

Hasan has now hit back at Mahudullah's comments, telling Bangladesh TV: ''There are two things that I did not get. Like he said they feel bad when anyone questions their commitment.

"I don't think anyone raised question about their commitment… Not for once I said anything about commitment. Secondly, he said I belittled them but I feel it's an emotional outburst.

"I will still stick to my point that I was not happy with their approach, attitude and planning in the first game."

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