Mashrafe Mortaza led Bangladesh are set to participate the Asia Cup 2018 beginning from September 15 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They will play the tournament opener against Sri Lanka and will later play Afghanistan on September 20.
Their track record in the league stages will decide whether they get to play against India in the next stage or not. However, ahead of the tournament, skipper Mortaza has stated that his team is capable of beating India.
While speaking in a presser on Mirpur, the confident Bangladesh skipper said, "We are not so far from the other team. I think India has a good chance (to win the title), and Pakistan will play at their home-like ground. So, they also have the opportunity (to clinch the trophy). But I want to say that, we have the ability to beat them too. We have to see if we can make the Super Four by playing good cricket in the group phase."
Mortaza has already speculated about the upcoming challenges in the UAE conditions. But he still believes if everything falls on the path correctly, they can sail out safely.
"After that, there are many calculations. If everything goes in the right way, we won't be so far from other teams. We may have to face the tough situation on many occasions. Because we did not play in UAE as a team before. So, the condition will not be easy for us. Overall, we are thinking from every angle," he added.
Here's Bangladesh squad for Aisa Cup 2018:
Mashrafe Mortaza (C), Shakib Al Hasan (VC), Tamim Iqbal, Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Ariful Haque, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Nazmul Hossain, Mehidy Hasan, Nazmul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Haider Rony.