Skipper Mashrafe Mortaza admits he was unaware that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) made changes to their Asia Cup squad but warned the new arrivals they must raise their game when they take on Afghanistan on Sunday.

Not impressed by their performances in the UAE despite reaching the Super Four stage, the BCB recalled batsmen Imrul Keyes and Soumya Sarkar in the hope of more positive showings.

After being outclassed by India in their seven-wicket defeat on Friday, they face a must-win clash against Afghanistan who thrashed them by 136 runs in the group stage.

Mortaza revealed he didn’t have any discussion with the BCB of possible additions. “I am not sure who is coming to join the team,” said the 34-year-old. “It is not clear yet, because there was no such discussion (with top management) about it. They were left out of the team for their poor performance as well.”

However the national skipper wants his team to respond from two consecutive defeats, knowing another loss will see them eliminated.

“I don’t know whether they worked anything technical to fix their problems. That will matter in a big tournament like Asia Cup. Think about Afghanistan (for the next match),” he added.

“We have to play against a tough bowling attack. That will not be easy for anyone. Everything is tough in international cricket. You have to score runs or take wickets admitting it. I am hopeful to bounce back as we did it before. Nothing is impossible.”