West Indies Akil mocks Mirpur’s wicket

Sports Desk

The past 24 hours have been a hectic one for West Indies spinner Akil Hossain. He was included in the ODI squad yesterday, and it took a while to check into the hotel after arriving in Bangladesh at 2:30 am yesterday. But by noon, he was in the West Indies innings. In a match where everything was there, except for the slow pace, Akil not only secured a Super Over win to level the series, but also added extra colour to the match with his sense of humour. He had fun winning the match. On the Mirpur pitch.

He also bowled a no-ball once in the Super Over, but in the end, his perfect execution made the difference, as Bangladesh fell behind by one run while chasing the 10-run target.

“I have nothing left in me now, my friend,” Akil said of his turbulent 24 hours. “I reached the hotel at 4 am. But that’s part of the job, and once you commit, you have to be ready to give 100 percent. No excuses. I almost messed up, but in the end I was able to bring the team to victory—that’s the relief,” he added.

There has been a lot of debate about the pitch in this ODI series, with the black clay wicket being the talk of the town. On such a pitch, spinners can dominate. Akil was asked if he thought, “Why am I not in the team?” after watching the first match on TV.

He laughed, “No, not really. I turned on the TV—I wanted to check first, because it seemed like there was something wrong with the TV. I thought, maybe the color was off! The pitch was so black that I said, ‘There must be something wrong with my television.’ To be honest, I was surprised. But it didn’t cross my mind, ‘Why am I not in the team?’

“I believe that the selectors and those in charge are there to make decisions. My job is to go out on the field and give my best, and leave the rest to them,” he said.

When asked whether a wicket like Mirpur was suitable for good cricket, Akil’s answer was straightforward.

“Today we broke the record—50 overs of spin bowling! Tell me, where in the world have you seen anything like that? It was a great match, exciting, thrilling—nail-biting excitement right up to the end. But I won’t say anything beyond that,” he said, hinting that as entertaining as the match was, the wicket was not ideal for cricket.

The series is now level, and such a hard-fought victory has greatly boosted the West Indies team’s confidence—which will have the biggest impact in the final match of the series.

“A win like that gives a lot to the team. It unites everyone, gives everyone confidence. At the end of the day, a win is a win. This kind of win—where everyone fights together and wins—works as a great motivator for the team. Hopefully, that will work in our favor in the final match as well,” he said.