PALLEKELE, Sri Lanka: All-rounder Shakib Al Hasan Thursday blasted his players for failing to do the basics during their first round exit from the World Twenty20.
Bangladesh crashed out of the tournament after their eight-wicket defeat against Pakistan in group D on Tuesday. They lost the first match to New Zealand by 59 runs.
Hasan hit his country’s highest individual score in all Twenty20 internationals with 84 against Pakistan to guide them to a challenging 175-6 but their rivals comfortably chased the target for the loss of only two wickets.
Hasan, 25, said Bangladeshi players’ fielding had not been up to scratch.
“I didn’t like the way we lost,” Hasan told Bangla daily Prothom Alo. “We should have been lively after scoring 175, saved around fifteen runs while fielding.
“I am talking about elementary things like standing 10 yards inside the boundary on the larger side of the ground. This is just a matter of common sense,” said Hasan, also a former captain.
Hasan described lack of abilities in fielders as annoying.
“These things annoy me because neither the captain nor I can tell this every ball. Then the fielder doesn’t put in the dive as the ball nears the boundary line. The dive may not work but at least the action inspires others,” said Hasan.
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim had also lamented his team’s lack of ability to supplement Hasan, who he described as “the best ever player produced by Bangladesh.”
Hasan said the lack of fight by Bangladesh increased his disappointment.
“I think I will expect these things all the time. If we had done everything properly and lost, I wouldn’t have felt so bad. I would have thought, ‘they are a better team on paper and on the field and as a result we lost’.
“The disappointment would have been two out of 10, now it is six.” Hasan said his own success was overshadowed by team’s failure.
“From a personal point of view, I had a good day. But the disappointment was to see the game being given away,” said Hasan.
Shakib critical of sloppy Bangladesh
Shakib critical of sloppy Bangladesh
Inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wraps up at Dubai Offshore Club
- Sailors aged 8-18 competed in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes
DUBAI: The inaugural Kidzink Pearl Cup wrapped up in Dubai after welcoming more than 100 youth sailors from 17 countries for one of the Middle East’s first international open youth sailing regattas.
Held from Dec. 15-21 at Dubai Offshore Sailing Club with the support of Dubai Sports Council, the Kidzink Pearl Cup brought together sailors aged 8-18 to compete in the Optimist Coached, Optimist, ILCA 4, 29er and RS Feva classes.
Backed by global educational design company Kidzink as title sponsor and strategic partner, the event combined four days of competitive racing with ideal windy conditions, with three days of Olympic-level coaching delivered by an international coaching team, giving young sailors the chance to train and race in competitive and challenging conditions alongside peers from different countries and sailing cultures.
The young sailors also took part in interactive onshore sessions developed with Kidzink’s research team, with the event putting the focus on leadership, inclusivity and clean-water awareness.
Charlotte Borghesi, founder and general manager of Kidzink, said: “The energy throughout the week was incredible. You could see learning happening in real time, friendships forming on the dock and young sailors growing in confidence every day.
The Kidzink Pearl Cup is about more than racing, it’s about creating an environment where young people feel inspired, supported and excited to learn.”
A two-time world champion sailor herself, Borghesi brings first-hand experience to the event, having made history in 2023 as the first female helmswoman to win the SB20 World Championship, followed by her team’s victory at the SB20 Women’s World Sailing Championship in Singapore in 2025.
Alongside the racing program, sailors took part in Kidzink’s interactive learning sessions. The UAE sessions built on work first piloted at the Kidzink-supported 29er Class European and World Championships earlier this year.
Local talent featured strongly throughout the week, with members of the DOSC racing squad lining up alongside international competitors. Among them were 14-year-old Chloe Montanet and 12-year-old Edward West.
In the Optimist Coached fleet, first place was claimed by Lev Ryashin (RUS), followed by Matteo Bertucci (ITA) in second and Gonzalo Montero (ESP) in third.
In the Optimist class Jean-Luc Herve (UAE) topped the podium, followed by Xuan Ya Tong (KSA) in second, and Miquel Rossello-Collinge (ESP) rounding out the podium.
The ILCA 4 title went to Fynley Britton (GBR), with Indraneel Roy (IND), and Katyayani Kaushik (IND) completing the podium.
In the 29er fleet, Dominic West and Fynley Britton took top honours, followed by Lily Britton and Matteo Gardenghi in second place with Noah Fisk and Alex Simmonds third.
The RS Feva Coached podium consisted of Ameya Rahul Nair and Arya Khanna in first, Miles Wilson-Brown and Noah Kahlon second, and Finlay Henderson and Rayan Abdallah third.
“Our work in sailing reflects our broader mission to design and create educational environments and experiences where young people thrive,” Borghesi added. “The Kidzink Pearl Cup is just the beginning of much more to come.”
