Andrew Fidel Fernando is a senior writer at ESPNcricinfo. @afidelf

Mahmudullah has history in performing well at ICC events, he made back-to-back hundreds in the 2015 ODI World Cup and a hundred when Bangladesh beat New Zealand in the 2017 Champions Trophy. But here, he missed their first match with injury and self-destructed in the second.

“Even the shot selection we’ve seen today was very disappointing,” Jaffer said. “Mushfiq [Mushfiqur] playing that shot, Mahmudullah playing that wild shot. And this is a must-win game. You want them to step up in these kinds of games and make themselves count. So that’s been the story in the ICC events, unfortunately.”

Jaffer also felt that Bangladesh were at least “50 to 60 runs short” on a Rawalpindi surface which wasn’t offering much help for the bowlers.

“They could have easily put 300-plus on that pitch,” he said. “They have got themselves to blame. It is too much to ask from the bowling unit to get a team New Zealand all out for below 240.”

“I like the look of their bowling attack,” Bond said. “They have got the heat, they have got the left-armer [Mustafizur Rahman] which New Zealand and a team like England doesn’t have. The spinners are good.

“Also the fine margins… they missed chances. If you miss those run-out chances or those dropped catches, they are the difference between winning or losing a game. If they had taken those chances, this game could have been completely different. There is a lot to work with with their bowling attack. I think their batting in the end was the problem.”

Bond, who coaches extensively in the franchise T20 circuit, also felt that any coach would “feel a bit grumpy” after the kind of performance Bangladesh put in as their Champions Trophy 2025 journey came to an end.

“I think it’s the natural inclination as a coach to feel that way,” Bond said. “If you start talking about what you shouldn’t do and let emotion pour out as a coach, it’s a dangerous place to go. So you’re still trying to create an environment where you want guys to come out and play positively, you want them to be really clear about how you’re going to play.

“And at the end of the day, if they go out and try to execute their game plans and play the way that you want and they lose, then that’s okay. If they don’t, then it makes it very difficult. So that’s what you’re looking for as a player.

“You want, ‘this is how the coach wants me to play my role in the team. If I go and do that to the best of my ability, then it’s okay.’ You know, some days it’s not going to work and we’re not a fly on the wall in the Bangladesh camp, so we don’t know what those conversations are and it’s difficult to make judgments on that stuff.”

New Zealand 240 for 5 (Ravindra 112, Latham 55) beat Bangladesh 236 for 9 (Shanto 77, Bracewell 4-26, O’Rourke 2-40) by five wickets

Taskin Ahmed and Nahid Rana raised Bangladesh’s hopes with a fiery opening spell, rattling Will Young’s stumps in the first over and snaring Williamson for a rare single-digit score. The infield was richly populated at that point. The whole atmosphere was buzzing, the crowd also getting in the act. Into this walked Ravindra. One of the best things about his batting is his touch. It’s so pure. Down at No. 4 – he was brought into the XI to replace an ill Daryl Mitchell – there was possibly a risk that he wouldn’t be able to take full toll of that. But as luck would have it, he began his innings within the field restrictions and that meant he could profit from his timing. His first five fours were all about finding the gap because his timing always took care of the rest.

Ravindra had to wait 11 overs since the field spread to find his next boundary but that didn’t mean he was stagnant. His first 23 runs came off 21 balls with five fours. His next 28 runs came off 29 balls with one four. There was one chance in between all that. A mix-up with his Wellington team-mate Devon Conway could have resulted in him being run-out had Tanzid Hasan been able to get a direct hit in the 12th over.

Bangladesh also weren’t able to rotate strike. New Zealand could. Those were the biggest points of difference between the two teams. The pitch did become much better for batting under lights though, a fact Mitchell Santner was looking forward to when he won the toss and decided to chase and of all people, Bracewell was his ace in the hole with the ball. The 34-year-old offspin-bowling allrounder himself couldn’t believe he’d taken 4 for 26 off 10 uninterrupted overs. In the mid-innigs interview, he said “Funny one, once you let go [of the ball] you don’t have much control what happens at the other end.”

Bracewell contributed to his success by slowing his pace down. Bangladesh contributed considerably more. They exit the tournament having faced more than 50 overs of dot balls. Their decision-making left them so short on batting resources that they had Taskin on strike for the 45th over and it ended up as a maiden. The death overs were a total flex for the Black Caps. At one point, they were more than happy with just three fielders on the boundary, instead of the five allowed.

Bangladesh were reminded what could have been towards the end of the chase when there was sharp turn, leading edges, low-bounce and even a direct-hit run-out. The wicket merely added to their regret at the one that got away – Ravindra was 25 when Tanzid missed – and the runs that got away – 260 would’ve made this game so much more competitive.

“We were clear what we wanted to do if we won the toss. We wanted to bat. Yes, we lost some early wickets, which set us back. But despite that, the way we came back, Jaker and I, if one of us had done a bit more, we might have got to 260-270,” Hridoy said at the press interaction afterwards. “The match scenario would have been different then. We scored 30-40 runs too few. If you see, they took 46.3 overs to finish the chase, so it wasn’t easy.

“The pitch was tricky. Look at their innings, they were not too comfortable either. But that’s not in our hands. Conditions are different everywhere – we have to play on the pitch we get. This is not an excuse. I am just saying that the pitch was tricky to bat on.”

Hridoy had walked out at No. 5, with Bangladesh at 26 for 3, with Mohammed Shami and Harshit Rana having picked up the wickets to fall. Then Axar took over, sending back Tanzid Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim off back-to-back deliveries. With Jaker then, progress was slow but steady, perhaps not ideal, but Bangladesh couldn’t afford to lose more wickets at that stage. That said, it did look like the pitch had eased out and batting was comparatively easy.

“It might have looked easy, but it wasn’t, since we had lost five wickets,” Hridoy said. “We talked a lot with each other and to ourselves. We had to fight and find a way. I played a lot of dot balls at the start, but I felt I would be able to catch up. But my cramps set me back. If such a situation crops up again, I might do even better. I hope we don’t make the same mistakes again.

“If we had taken a couple more wickets at the start, the scenario could have been different”

Towhid Hridoy

“I think my cramps hampered our innings. I might have been able to score 20-30 runs more if I hadn’t cramped up.”

With just 228 to play with, against a strong India batting line-up, not many would have given Bangladesh a chance, but after a poor start with the ball – India scored 68 for 1 in the first ten compared to Bangladesh’s 39 for 5 – they kept things tight. Bangladesh were always behind, but the chase did get just a bit tricky, Shubman Gill’s 101 not out eventually the difference.

“I did think we could fight with the runs we had. We bowled well and fought well. We gave away a few boundaries at the start, which didn’t help, but we fought back well,” Hridoy said. “If we had taken a couple more wickets at the start, the scenario could have been different.”

The Champions Trophy continues to be an eight-team tournament, split into two groups of four teams each. The top two from each group will proceed to the semi-finals. Each group match is worth more than $34,000 to the victorious team. the teams that finish fifth and sixth will each earn $350,000, while the seventh- and eighth-placed teams will take home $140,000 each.

“In addition, all eight teams are assured of $125,000 each for competing in the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025,” an ICC statement said.

ICC chair Jay Shah said, “The substantial prize pot underscores the ICC’s ongoing commitment to investing in the sport and maintaining the global prestige of our events. Beyond the financial incentive, this tournament ignites fierce competition, captivates fans worldwide, and plays a vital role in fostering the growth and long-term sustainability of cricket for future generations.”

It will continue to be an eight-team tournament and played every four years going forward. The Women’s Champions Trophy will be played for the first time in 2027 in the T20 format.

“We are going to the Champions Trophy to become champions,” Shanto said. “All eight teams deserve to be champions in this tournament. They are all quality teams. I believe our team has the ability. No one will feel extra pressure. Everyone genuinely wants (to become champions), and believes in their capabilities. We don’t know what Allah has written in our fate. We are working hard and doing our best. I believe we can achieve our goal.”

“Of course, we will miss him but I don’t know why this question is being asked,” Shanto said. “Everyone already knows the answer, and many players have said it before. Of course, we will miss Shakib bhai. It would have been great if he were here. This question has been answered many times. I don’t think it’s relevant to talk about this before a tournament.”

So who will take over Shakib’s role in the team? “Whoever gets the responsibility will have to play Shakib’s role,” Shanto said.

There are a few more big names – like Litton Das and Tamim Iqbal – missing from the Bangladesh squad, but Shanto insisted that he was happy with his team. “I am very happy and confident with the 15 players in the squad,” he said. “Anyone who plays has the ability to win a match single-handedly.”

“Not too long ago, we didn’t have quality pace bowlers, but now we have a strong pace bowling unit. We didn’t have wristspinners before, but now we do. Overall, we have a balanced team.”

Najmul Hossain Shanto

Shanto also called for Bangladesh to asses the conditions quickly and raise their game by chasing and defending 320-plus totals. Bangladesh are set to play their first match against India in Dubai before facing New Zealand and Pakistan in Rawalpindi.

“I expect the pitches in Pakistan to be 300-plus wickets. If we bat first, we need to put up such scores. Even while defending, we will need to defend such scores. In Dubai, conditions vary at different times. Still, I think scores will be around 260-280. It’s tough to predict exact numbers, but historically, that’s how it has been. We will analyse how many runs are needed on a given day or how many we need to restrict the opposition to.”

Shanto also hopes his bowling attack, particularly the pacers, continue to give their best, and believes Bangladesh have a “balanced team”.

“Not too long ago, we didn’t have quality pace bowlers, but now we have a strong pace bowling unit,” he said. “We didn’t have wristspinners before, but now we do. Overall, we have a balanced team. If everyone fulfills their responsibilities properly, we can defeat any team at any time.”