Trott feels Afghanistan are favourites against Bangladesh

Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott had a little difficulty understanding the question at first but once he got the gist of it, he just pointed to the logo of the Afghanistan Cricket Board during a press conference in Lahore on Friday. The question that was posed was regarding who he felt was the favourite for the Asia Cup clash between Bangladesh and Afghanistan on Sunday, a do-or-die fixture for the Tigers.

The Afghanistan head coach highlighted the fact that they beat Bangladesh in a ODI series for the first time in Bangladesh just recently.

"We played Sri Lanka in a series. And we played Bangladesh in a series. And we beat Bangladesh for the first time in Bangladesh, which is a good achievement. So the teams will know each other really well, and we would have played each other a lot. So, I expect and I predict some high-quality cricket, and some tough cricket, which is good for the development of all three countries," he said.

The coach said that given that Bangladesh would be desperate for a win, they too needed to match the intensity of their opposition.

"We know it's going to be tough. Both of our games are going to be tough. But focusing on the Bangladesh game first, we know that they're going to be desperate to win, obviously. And it's our job to match their intensity and also the desire to win. So, we all know that if we don't come with that mindset, matching them, or better mentality and better skills, we're going to be under pressure," the former England batter opined.

"So that's the message today. And that's going to be the message tomorrow. And that's going to be the message on match day as well. So, I'm really looking forward to it. It's a great privilege to be at the Asia Cup. There's so much history in the competition. So many great players. Fantastic historic cricketing nations. So, it's a real feather in the cap for the Afghan side. If we can do really well and prepare well for the World Cup as well," Trott added.