'We care about winning, not net run rate' - Towhid Hridoy defends Bangladesh's approach in Hong Kong win

Published - 12 Sept 2025, 18:55 IST | Updated - 12 Sept 2025, 19:08 IST

Towhid Hridoy has come out in defence of Bangladesh's "safety over speed" approach during their triumph against Hong Kong on Thursday, September 11. Hridoy finished unbeaten on 35 off 36 in Bangladesh's seven-wicket win at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

Hridoy emphasised that what mattered more was crossing the finish line rather than finishing earlier. He also shed light on Bangladesh's success-first mindset and praised the smart brand of cricket during the run-chase. Hridoy even acknowledged that he could not strike the ball the way he would have liked to.

"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. You (the media) would have had something to say had we lost today. We could have finished the game earlier but we stuck to the demands of the situation. Our mentality is to always win. 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 tried to hit more boundaries, but it didn't happen," Hridoy was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

The 24-year-old even remarked that Bangladesh's aim was to top Group B by going unbeaten, stating that as one of the main reasons behind net run rate not being at the back of their mind while chasing Hong Kong's 143-run total.

"So, should we have gone to the ground to lose against Hong Kong? Our target was to win. Every team can have their day in T20s. Maybe, we could have finished earlier had I struck a few more boundaries. 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 added.

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Bangladesh won the match by seven wickets and 14 balls to spare. Skipper Litton Das secured the Player of the Match award for his enterprising 39-ball 59-run knock. His unit will take on Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, September 13.