Bangladesh’s head coach, Chandika Hathurusingha, believes that reaching the semifinals of the World Cup is a “realistic” goal for his team as they prepare to face Afghanistan in their World Cup opener. While some criticized Hathurusingha’s recent remarks for lacking ambition, he clarified his perspective at a pre-match press conference, stating, “We all want to win the World Cup, but realistically, if we win four to five games, we give ourselves a chance to get into the semifinal of the knockout stage – that’s our first aim.”

Hathurusingha explained that his intention was to alleviate the pressure on his players with his earlier comments. Bangladesh has not reached the semifinals in any of their six World Cup appearances. However, Hathurusingha believes that the format of this year’s World Cup, where all 10 teams play each other to decide the semifinalists, offers his side a chance to achieve this historic milestone, especially given the familiar playing conditions.