Mahmudullah still haunted by India defeat

Bangladesh veteran Mahmudullah has opened up on his nation's astonishing defeat to India at the World T20, the allrounder admitting he blames himself for the loss.

Despite needing just two from the final three balls of their group-stage clash to record an upset win over the tournament hosts in Bangalore, Bangladesh fell in a heap.

They lost wickets off each of the last three deliveries, including a final ball run-out by MS Dhoni, where the India wicketkeeper somehow managed to beat non-striker Mustafizur Rahman in a sprint to the stumps.

Only minutes earlier, with Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah at the crease, underdogs Bangladesh were in the box seat.

"How can I forget that?" Mahmudullah told Bangladesh website bdnews24.com. "When Mushfiqur (Rahim) and I were batting… (I) never thought that we could lose."

After Mahmudullah hit the first ball of Hardik Pandya's final over for a single, Rahim had slammed the second ball through the offside for four, then scooped the third for another boundary.

Needing just two runs from the remaining three deliveries, Rahim holed out to Shikar Dhawan at deep mid-wicket.

But with the batsman crossing, the new batsman, Shuvagata Chowdhury, was at the non-striker's end and Mahmudullah, with more than 200 games of international experience under his belt, needed two off two.

The 30-year-old allrounder, deep in his crease and right in front of his stumps, gets the exact delivery he wants from Pandya – a knee-high full toss.

Somehow though, he shanks it to Dhawan, who takes his second catch in as many balls on the mid-wicket fence.

Three weeks after the match Mahmudullah is still haunted by his dismissal.

"Mushfiq's wicket after two fine boundaries was unthinkable," Mahmudullah said. "After that, my dismissal was unimaginable as well – it was such a mistake.

"The ball was there to be hit for six but I missed. But I can't go back and fix it.

"In the future, I will try to choose safer options in such situations."

A few moments of madness consigned Bangladesh to a group-stage exit as India, who had also defeated the Tigers in the final of the Asia Cup a month earlier, went on to claim a semi-final berth.

It was a huge moment for Bangladesh, a missed opportunity for a team desperate to make an impression on the international landscape.