“Yayyy, we qualified,” Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed posted on his Facebook page immediately after Sri Lanka beat Afghanistan in their final group-stage game on Thursday, helping the Tigers advance to the Super Four of the ongoing Asia Cup T20 in the UAE.

The equation was straightforward: Afghanistan needed a win to qualify. At one stage, they looked set to march into the next phase after Mohammad Nabi’s five sixes in the last over lifted them to 170. But Sri Lanka chased the target clinically, ending Afghanistan’s hopes.

The Lankan victory came as a huge relief for the Tigers, who had been waiting anxiously in Dubai. A defeat for Afghanistan would mean Bangladesh’s elimination before the second round and an early flight home.

“We were watching the game. I personally saw the last part of the game. I was checking the score before dinner. There was a bit of toing and froing during the match, keeping us nervous. It was out of our control, and luckily it went in our favour,” Bangladesh pace bowling coach Shaun Tait said in the pre-match press-conference on Friday.

Now, the Tigers are determined to seize the opportunity and, more importantly, dispel the notion that their place was secured by another team’s “favour” — a claim widely circulated on social media by critics.

“I don’t understand this argument that we reached the Super Four on someone else’s favour,” said a member of the Bangladesh squad. “We are here because we are higher on the points table. We beat Afghanistan, and that is why we are in this position. Such talk only undermines our performance in the tournament so far.”

It seems crucial for Bangladesh to believe they have reached the Super Four on the strength of their own performance rather than external factors, especially after a team member briefly posted “Thank You Sri Lanka” on social media following Sri Lanka’s win that kept Bangladesh alive in the tournament.

The post was quickly deleted, perhaps after the player realized the sensitivity of the message. Still, both he and his teammates must move past such narratives of favoritism as they prepare to face an in-form Sri Lanka in their opening Super Four match in Dubai.

Bangladesh will be eager to regroup and put their best foot forward, confident there will be no distractions this time — unlike their first meeting with Sri Lanka, when they were unexpectedly summoned by Sports Advisor Asif Mohammad Shojib Bhuyain just six hours before the game.

“We have played Sri Lanka recently. So, both of the teams are very familiar with each other. It is a nice clash. They got the better of us in the last match. The good thing is we can just focus on what we’re doing. Making the final four is a big effort. We move on from that: training tonight and then a big clash tomorrow,” Tait stated.

In that earlier clash, the Tigers went in with only four specialist bowlers. Whether they stick to a similar combination or bring in an extra pacer is the main talking point ahead of Saturday’s crucial encounter. Training sessions have shown the squad in an upbeat mood, determined to make a statement on the big stage.

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