West Indies left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein admitted that he was surprised to not see Rishad Hossain bat for Bangladesh in the Super Over of the second ODI. West Indies defended 11 runs to keep their hopes alive in the series, courtesy Akeal's composed bowling effort.
While the Bangladesh team management opted to send Saif Hasan and Soumya Sarkar and followed it with Nazmul Hossain, who failed to take the team over the line, the absence of Rishad was surprising given he made 39 off just 14 to help the hosts post over 200.
"Yes, I was a bit surprised (not to see Rishad in the super over)," said Akeal. "I mean the guy that seemed to do the most destruction in the match, 39 off about 14 deliveries not out, and he's not in your Super Over, hitting to the short side where he struck two sixes," he said.
"You know, we all were a bit surprised that he didn't come out at all, and you know, it worked in our favor. He was one of the few guys who sort of packed that power and he had that reach because he's quite a tall guy," he added.
Akeal, who arrived last night, added that he is happy to do the job for his team despite arriving at the team hotel just hours before the game. "I don't think I have anything left in me again, buddy," said Akeal. "Got to the hotel at 4 AM but it's part of the job, and once you commit to something and once you give your word, you better be ready to turn up and give 100%. No excuses and I almost messed it up, but thankfully, you know, I took the team home in the end," he said.
"I have been in a situation like this. It was an Eliminator in The Hundred. And it started off quite similar. I bowled a no-ball. In The Hundred, a no-ball is two. And I had to defend nine or something like that. And one ball went for six, and then they needed two off four balls or something. And I remember Chris Jordan coming up to me, and he said, "Don't worry, you got this." And I said to myself, "If he can believe that I have this, with two runs to go, Liam Livingstone, world-class hitter on strike, with four balls to go, if Chris Jordan can believe, why can't I believe?" So, yes, I've been in a situation like this before, and very thankfully, I've gotten over the line and won the game for my team," he said.
"It's a tricky pitch. It's not one that is turning at a fair pace. The ball is jumping a bit, so for me, to the left-hander, it was definitely to make him hit square. He's quite a powerful guy, so I think that if he has arms, he can hit through the line easily. So, for me, it was just trying to spin the ball from as close as possible on a good length and force him to hit square, because that square boundary was quite big."
