U19 WC: Bangladesh face New Zealand in semi-final

Bangladesh Under-19 Cricket Team will face New Zealand in the second semi-final of the ongoing ICC Under-19 World Cup in South Africa today (Thursday), reports UNB.

The match will begin at 2:00pm (Bangladesh time).

Earlier, India booked a seat for the final eliminating their arch-rival Pakistan by a huge 10 wickets in the first semi-final on Tuesday. They will play the final on 9 February at Senwes Park, Potchefstroom against the winners of the second semi-final.

On the way to semi-finals, Bangladesh beat one of the strongest contenders and hosts, South Africa, by massive 104 runs in the quarter-final at Senwes Park, Potchefstroom on 30 January.

On the other hand, New Zealand reached the semi-finals beating West Indies at Willowmoore Park, Benoni.

If the Young Tigers can beat New Zealand in the semi-final, it will be Bangladesh's best achievement in any World Cup as no Bangladeshi team managed to reach the final in the past.

Bangladesh captain Akbar Ali said they are confident enough to beat the Young Kiwis like they beat them 4-1 in a five-match series last year.

"We're well-prepared both mentally and physically. Now, everything is about implementing our plan in the field. If we can play our usual game, I hope we can get the expected results," Akbar told the media ahead of the semi-final.

New Zealand advanced to the Super League quarter-final with a single win in the group phase. They lost one game and another one ended in no result.

But, Akbar said New Zealand are a tough opponent.

"New Zealand advanced to the semi-finals playing a good brand of cricket. So, they are obviously a tough opponent for us. They have a long batting line-up. We'll try to restrict them to a small total if we bowl first. I believe if we can play our natural game, we can win this game," he added.

"We are not taking much pressure in the match. We should take it as another game. If we think it's a semi-final or final, it'll just get heavier. We're trying to stay calm and play good brand of cricket in the field," the Bangladesh captain added.

Bangladesh Squad: Towhid Hridoy, Shoriful Islam, Tanzid Hasan, Rakibul Hasan, Shahadat Hossain, Shamim Hossain, Akbar Ali (Capt. and WK), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Parvez Hossain Emon, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Hasan Murad, Avishek Das, Prantik Nawrose Nabil and Shahin Alam - Collected from "Prothom Alo"