Asia Cup 2025: Bangladesh head coach calls back-to-back matches ‘unfair’, says any team can beat India
The scheduling of the ongoing Asia Cup has once again come under the scanner, with Bangladesh head coach saying it is ‘not fair’ for his team to have to play matches on consecutive days in the tournament.
Bangladesh is scheduled to play two high-intensity matches, against India and Pakistan, on Wednesday and Thursday in the Super Four stage of the continental event.
“It is extremely difficult to play back-to-back T20 matches or ODIs. It is not a nice thing, but we have prepared, we have trained really hard, and I think the guys are fit enough to handle it. But it is not a fair thing for any team to have to play back-to-back T20s, it is a lot more difficult than people seem to think,” Phil Simmons said on Tuesday, ahead of Bangladesh’s clash against India in Dubai.
This is not the first time the tournament has been criticised for poor scheduling, with Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan and his Sri Lankan counterpart Charith Asalanka making their displeasure known on the opening day of the tournament.
“To play a game in Abu Dhabi and to stay here in Dubai. You have all three games in Abu Dhabi, but your stay is in Dubai,” Rashid had said during the pre-tournament captains’ meet in Dubai, ahead of his team’s opening match against Hong Kong in Abu Dhabi, scheduled for the same day.
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“Right now, I feel very sleepy. I should answer it (the question) tomorrow, I think. It is really hard. We played back-to-back games in Zimbabwe and then travelled here straightaway,” Asalanka had complained during the interaction on September 9, after having played consecutive T20Is in Zimbabwe on September 6 and 7.
‘Every team can beat India’
While India has emerged as an overwhelming favourite in the tournament, Simmons doesn’t think the Indians are invincible.
“Every team has the ability to beat India. The game is played on the day. It is not what India has done before; it is what happens on Wednesday. It is what happens during that three-and-a-half-hour period. We will try to play as best as we can and hope to force mistakes in India’s armoury,” Simmons said in response to a query about Bangladesh’s prospects against a dominant Indian side.
A snapshot of Simmons’ lack of emotion in the dugout after his team’s resounding four-wicket win against Sri Lanka on Saturday in the Super Four opener did the rounds on social media. Explaining his impassiveness, the former West Indies all-rounder said that showing emotions at that stage of the competition would have been premature.
“We are not here to win a game against Sri Lanka; we are here to win the tournament. Until we get to that stage, where we are out of the tournament or have won the tournament, then I can release my emotions,” he said.
Published on Sep 23, 2025
