Bangladesh Under-19 captain Azizul Hakim Tamim believes that aggression and sledging are a part of cricket, and it was necessary against India in the final of the ACC Men's U-19 Asia Cup.
The champions of the 2024 edition returned home on Monday night and were received by the Bangladesh Cricket Board officials with bouquets at the airport.
The junior Tigers retained the title with an impressive 59-run victory over India in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.
They had claimed their maiden trophy of the tournament last year, defeating hosts UAE by a massive 195 runs in the final at the same venue.
'Indian players sledged, and we gave it back ... To win, you must show some aggression and do some sledging,' Azizul told reporters at the Hazrat Shahjalal Airport on Monday.
During the final, a large number of expatriates were cheering for the Bangladesh team, chanting 'Allahu Akbar' from the stands.
鈥榃hen they [fans] were saying it, as a Muslim, I liked it. They supported us players a lot; they were in the stands from the morning. Alhamdulillah, it's a great feeling.鈥�
Azizul also shared an incident from the semi-final match against Pakistan, where they secured a seven-wicket victory, which turned out to be quite heated.
'I had missed a free hit. A Pakistani fielder asked me, 'Did you even see the ball?' After that, I hit a six and then asked him, 'Did you see the ball this time?'.'
Azizul expressed confidence about carrying the momentum from their Asia Cup victory into the forthcoming ICC U-19 World Cup, scheduled to be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia in 2026.
鈥極f course, we have gained confidence from winning the Asia Cup. Beating teams like India and Pakistan also makes you feel confident,鈥� he said.
鈥榃e will try to hold on to this confidence. We have a few series coming up and then the World Cup. We will try to perform well.鈥�
听