Follow UsLess than a week before the commencement of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, the Afghanistan Cricket Board appointed former Indian batter Ajay Jadeja as the mentor for their side, keeping an eye on his familiarity with Indian conditions. Jadeja, who during his heydays used to be a regular member of the Indian side, has been involved in media works in the last few years and has studied Indian conditions in great detail.
Ahead of Afghanistan’s opening encounter against Bangladesh at the picturesque HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, Bangladesh skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi sounded optimistic about his side’s chances against Bangladesh and added that the presence of Jadeja has been superb for them.
“He (Jadeja) played a lot for India, he has the experience and knows about the conditions in India. From the first day that he is with us we are talking with him. He is a very positive person and is always talking positive things to improve our team. We will get the advantage of that and we are trying to get the advantage of every talk that he gives to the team. And it will help us throughout the tournament,” Shahidi said in the pre-match press conference in Dharamshala.
One of the most picturesque stadiums in the world, Dharamsala has a distinct reputation of its own. Shahidi is extremely happy about playing their first match at the venue, and they are also ready to face the “little bit bouncy and little bit seam friendly” conditions that would be on offer.
“It looks different to other grounds in India. As we know, as per our experience, and we saw the games here in Dharamshala, it will be a little bit bouncy and a little bit seam-friendly. So, we know that, and we will adjust ourselves to that. We have that in our mind, and we will try our best to play according to the situation and the conditions that we have hare,” Shahidi added.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha added that they are going to tick one box at a time, and their first aim is to get to the semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup.
“We all want to win the World Cup, but as you rightly asked me, realistically is if we win 4-5 games, we give ourselves a chance to get into the semifinal of the knockout stage - that's our first aim. We have a good enough team to do that - our first aim is to get to the semifinal stage,” Hathurusingha added.
“People can dream, people can aim, people can have goals. Whatever the word you use, it is the same thing. We're trying to have a good World Cup and win matches. That's the main aim for me. As I just said to him, our aim is to get into the semifinal, that can be a dream or can be an aim - doesn't matter.”