Smiling is the best revenge - U19 World Cup winner Akbar Ali
The victorious Bangladesh U19 team is basking in glory after capping off a phenomenal campaign by emerging victorious in the U19 World Cup in South Africa. Captain Akbar Ali has stressed on the fact that keeping things simple has worked for him in the pressure situations.
Akbar,18, played the role of a sheet anchor with a watchful 77-ball 43*. The high-intensity contest was marred by controversies as players from both camps were involved in verbal spats. The pacers from the Tiger’s unit made it quite obvious with aggressive send-offs and by swearing expletives.
India suffered a dramatic collapse, losing seven wickets for 21 runs. Chasing a tricky revised target of 170, the Bangladesh side clinched victory by 3 wickets in Potchefstroom via the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method after defending champions India had set them a target of 177.
Akbar, who led Bangladesh to their first major cricket title, was aware of the pressure of playing India in the decider. However, instead of battling fire with fire, Akbar said he smiled every time a curse word from the opposition camp was thrown at him. The boys in blue didn't hold back and were equally at loggerheads with the opposition with certain chosen words.
Akbar was quoted by Bangladesh CricTime
"Whenever you play with India, it is not like that you only play 50 overs. It is difficult. If you put them under pressure, your chances of winning increase. I read in a place that smiling is the best revenge.”
Akbar and his boys received a warm welcome from the home fans. The colts' skipper was in Mirpur and spent some time at the academy before leaving for his home. The youngster had apologised on behalf of his team after the finals, at the post-match conference.
Also read: Bangladesh beat India to claim historic Under-19 Cricket World Cup triumph