Question: Rangpur did not start well. You are finally the champion after three consecutive wins. How is it possible?
Mohammad Ashraful: Did not win the first two matches in the tournament. But the bowling-fielding was excellent. The wicket was not much better in the match against the Guyana Warriors. Rangpur made 117 runs. We had that belief that it is possible to win with this run. Kamrul Islam Rabbi took 3 wickets in his first over and we won. Both the matches we lost were under our control. Everyone was saddened by not being able to win even in a situation where they could win. Because, all of us in the team were experienced. The wicket we are used to playing on was the same wicket (in Guyana). All in all, we were a team like to be champions. Among other teams, the Guyana team was good. We were the better team than all the other teams. I think the best team is the champion. There was a belief in everyone, so (despite losing the first two matches) we managed to win the rest of the matches. Cricket also takes luck. In the last three matches we were lucky with the toss, we won the toss and batted in all the three matches.
Question: I have heard that Guyana's wicket and conditions are much like Mirpur. Bangladesh team also got a lot of success there. Did you help a lot?
Ashraful: It's been easy for us. The wicket was tough. Wasn't very easy to play. We have adapted well.
Question: Whether assistant coach, but the taste of winning the title in the first tournament. How do you see this achievement?
Ashraful: Alhamdulillah, it feels good. I started coaching two and a half months ago. So I got such an opportunity… Soumya, Saif, Sohan, Afif, Sheikh Mehdi — all of the team are national team cricketers. I enjoyed working with them. I played with them a few days ago. Soumya Sarkar's consistent performance is doing her best. Saif batted well. Alhamdulillah, Allah has made us champions. Team coach Mickey Arthur is a good coach. Good people too. He had no idea about the local cricketers. Whenever what was said, he would accept it brilliantly. I enjoyed working with him.
Question: What did you learn as a coach from this tournament?
Ashraful: As a coach you learn every day. Learning never ends. Being a player and also leading the team, this experience was new to me. I used to worry about the game. Now we have to think about how to help the cricketers to improve their performance. I was able to help. It feels good to get results. It would feel bad if the results were not available.
Question: He was talking about Soumya. He keeps coming and going in the national team due to discontinuity. But he is very consistent in this tournament. Scored a tournament highest 188 at an average of 47.00. Did you see a change in him? How to evaluate his performance?
Ashraful: Everyone knows how talented he is. How God Gifted. The problem that occurs in our country, if one format is bad, it affects another format. He has nothing to change. We used to talk about those things. Full freedom is given. The good thing is, he tried to play by understanding the situation of the match. If you understand what the wicket demands, the ball can be low on this wicket; Can't play standing up. You have to play a little low. His opening partner Taylor was good. Soumya is trying to play like an experienced player.
