Shanto admits WTC final hopes are fading

Bangladesh’s hopes of reaching the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final have suffered a major blow following their eight-wicket defeat to West Indies in the first Test, with captain Najmul Hossain Shanto admitting that qualification has become difficult.
Bangladesh had targeted at least four wins from their remaining six matches across three series to keep their final hopes alive, while also relying on other results. However, the home defeat has made that challenge considerably tougher.
The loss also dropped Bangladesh from fourth to fifth in the WTC standings, with India moving up to fourth.
“Honestly, playing in the final is now very difficult,” Shanto said on Saturday. Bangladesh set West Indies a target of just 170 in the fourth innings, believing the turning pitch would help their bowlers defend it. However, the hosts managed only two wickets.
Shanto felt Bangladesh's bowling, rather than the modest target, was primarily responsible for the defeat.
“Considering the condition of the pitch, even after scoring 170, we believed we could defend it. Unfortunately, that did not happen. We could have bowled a little better on this surface. Our bowlers were a bit inconsistent with their lengths,” he said.
The captain also identified the first-innings collapse as a turning point. Bangladesh finished the opening day at 213-3 but were eventually dismissed for 272, missing the opportunity to build a substantial lead.
“Considering how the wicket was playing and the position we were in at the end of the first day, we should have been in a much better position. We knew batting would become difficult later,” he said. Shanto also felt Bangladesh's batting failure was more responsible for the collapse than the bowling of West Indies left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican.
“Warrican bowled well, but I think our batting was worse than his bowling,” he said.
The skipper admitted he too had failed to shoulder enough responsibility with the bat, acknowledging that a big innings from him could have significantly improved Bangladesh's total.
“As a senior batter, I should have taken more responsibility. If I could have scored a big hundred, perhaps our total could have been 370 instead of 270,” he said.
West Indies also benefited from five umpire's-call decisions in the fourth innings, frustrating the hosts. However, Shanto refused to criticise the officials.
“When you set the opposition a target of 170, you would expect at least three of those five umpire’s calls to go your way. Unfortunately, that did not happen today. It is part of the game, and you cannot blame the umpires. We have to accept that it was not our day,” he concluded.