A celebration not quite complete
Will it be like a 100-year-old man reminiscing on the past? It may sound a bit harsh, but if we call a spade a spade, then the grey look of the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium (SBNS) outfield lend such an impression. The present appearance of the ground is in no way an ideal one to celebrate the occasion of celebrating the 100th ODI match today at the country's premier cricket venue.
After major renovation work last year, through which around six inches of topsoil from was replaced, the ground is yet to regain its beautiful greenish look; instead, it was slapped with a demerit point from the game's governing body after match referee Jeff Crowe had rated the outfield poor during the Bangladesh-Australia Test in August last year.
So there will be no blame on the fans if they clamour for a green-SBNS for the special occasion, nor if they ask why their beloved home team are not featured on the historic day.
It is fine to celebrate special occasions and if it is something like a century milestone, there is reason to put some special emphasis on it. So, when the country's premier cricket venue is going to host its hundredth ODI match today with the game between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, it deserves special attention.
It is a venue that has been the scene of a lot of joy and sorrow for the Tigers in international cricket apart from their daily association with the venue, and in that light it is reasonable to be upset about their absence from the momentous day.
Bangladesh ODI captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza would have been the right person yesterday to express his emotions ahead of the occasion, rather than Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews and Zimbabwe batsman Hamilton Masakadza having to recall fond memories of this venue.
"This has been a happy hunting ground for us, especially in 2014, when we had a great outing in Dhaka. But that's history now. We have to start fresh tomorrow. We have a different team as well. We have had so many fond memories and we are looking forward to some more," said Mathews.
"Obviously it's a great feeling to be a part of something that historic as you said we were the team which played the first game here. Yes, it's great to be a part of a history and to be present for it," said Masakadza.
The vital question surrounding this landmark and Bangladesh's absence is whether anybody at the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was aware of the occasion?
BCB however has been trying to make amends. Groundstaff are going to wear T-shirts commemorating the occasion and they were also working to convince match referee David Boon, who is interestingly also going to celebrate his hundredth match as a match referee, so that Mirpur's oldest groundsman – Abdul Matin, current assistant groundsman and one of those present for the first match -- can be present during the toss.
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