Bangladesh skipper defends Mushfiqur Rahim over premature celebration

Captain of the Bangladesh cricket team, Mashrafe Mortaza has defended wicket-keeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim's actions during the team's 1-run loss to India in the T20 World Cup. With the Bangladeshis needing 10 runs from the last 5 balls of the final over, Rahim smashed two back-to-back fours to bring the equation down to 2 from 3 balls.

After hitting the second boundary, the senior batsman pumped his fists and waved his bat in a premature celebration. However, as it turned out, Rahim was dismissed off the very next ball and Bangladesh eventually lost a match that they should have won.

Although Mushfiqur Rahim has received a lot of criticism from all quarters for his actions, he has found the backing of his skipper.

As reported by Bangladesh daily Prothom Alo, Mortaza said, " The things might have been different if he (Mushfiqur) could have kept his cool. Think of what he has done, how far he took us. This might have been the reason for his celebration."

In support of one of his team's senior players, the skipper stated, "There is nothing to think negatively. Any batsman might get excited after hitting two boundaries."

Mushfiqur Rahim's celebration was short-lived, though, as India sealed a tense victory over Bangladesh and maintained their unbeaten streak against them in T20Is.