Sakeb Subhan

Around the world on a Vespa: The ‘no-plan’ nomadic life

For those of us wedded and welded to our routine-ruled existences, there is an almost jealous fascination about people like Vespanda Ilario Lavarra.

Riyad's poetic justice

The similarities were uncanny, the possibilities either too cruel or poetically just. The actor and his nemesis were the same, as were the stage and situation, give or take a wicket here and a run there.

The spin stops

Warne singlehandedly revolutionised the difficult but immensely rewarding art of leg-spin in the early 1990s. Along with Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralidaran, he can be credited for the revival of spin bowling.

Children from slums with less than 3 months’ training defeat FIDE rated players

With less than three months’ training, Poly Khatun and Mim Akhter, children from the slums of Mirpur, have defeated internationally rated chess players.

Could it be a stepping stone for future riches?

Can Bangladesh win the World Cup? Even half a decade ago, that question would have been a preposterous one, but it has become less so in the 50-over format.

Human error challenge goes viral after Shakib apology

Bangladesh woke up today to a new craze that has gripped social media following ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan's Facebook apology last night.

When passion becomes bullying

On national television, a domestic cricketer had to flinch twice because his captain, a national superstar, threatened to hit him with the ball. Twice in the space of a few minutes. Not quite threatened, but the captain instinctively wound up to chuck the hard cricket ball at the hapless junior cricketer at point-blank range.

Covid-19 exposing Hassan’s failures

On Saturday, after a long absence due to the Covid-19 pandemic,Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Nazmul Hassan held court in a press conference. And over the course of the press conference, he proved once again that beyond obligatory soundbites about regional cricket associations come election time, problems at grassroots levels do not much capture his attention.

Nation building Covid-22 style: Separate the rich from the poor

Countries around the world have decided to take a leaf out of Emotionation’s book after a recent study showed how the then under-developed country used the Covid-22 crisis to become an economic powerhouse in 15 years.

#FreeToo breaks internet as free speech goes viral

The Covid-22 outbreak continues to upend the world order.

Reminiscence: My first match

The cricket bug (intended) bit me hard around the winter of 1995, when Sri Lanka, West Indies and Australia were locked in battle in the tri-series down under and I was holed up at my grandparents’ with fever, glued to the television.

Virus hits Emotionation

North Atlantic country Emotionation’s population has dipped below critical mass, according to the latest survey conducted by the United Rations, published yesterday.

A leader who will be missed

In 2013, the then Bangladesh coach Shane Jurgensen had said on a tour of Zimbabwe that he was actually thinking of flying Mashrafe Bin Mortaza in. His thought process had nothing to do with bolstering the squad with Bangladesh’s best ever fast bowler, who missed the tour due to injury, but it was just about having the most inspirational cricketer in the land among the squad to lift their spirits.

Letter from Tigers to the cubs

Crickileaks has obtained a letter sent by the Bangladesh national team to the Bangladesh Under-19 team on the day that the

The birth of belief

Such has been the conditioning of the Bangladeshi cricket fan that, before Bangladesh Under-19’s World Cup final against their Indian counterparts in Potchefstroom on Sunday, there was a general ac-ceptance among followers that this was as good as it would get.

A new beginning 12 years later

The three-match T20I series between Bangladesh and Pakistan, starting today in Lahore, may seem like the result of protracted diplomatic negotiations between the two respective cricket boards but with the focus shifting finally to cricket, the series carries greater importance than most recent assignments for Bangladesh.

Mustafizur’s decline and Tigers’ Test troubles

More than any other cricketer in Bangladesh’s history, Mustafizur Rahman has been treated with kid gloves by the Bangladesh team management, and with good reason.

Players call off strike

The impasse between the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and top cricketers was resolved when the BCB agreed to nine of the original 11 demands during a meeting between the two parties in Mirpur late last night.

Will the real custodians please stand up

Over the last two days, two press conferences took place at Bangladesh cricket’s headquarters in Mirpur: the first a 15-minute affair on Monday and the second yesterday stretching to nearly an hour and 40 minutes.

A time for introspection

There was much that was discouraging about Bangladesh’s 224-run loss to Afghanistan in the one-off Test in Chattogram yesterday. It has already been mentioned ad nauseum, but bears repeating one more time. Afghanistan were playing their third Test match just

Kane Williamson may have had to endure heartbreak in the World Cup final 2019

Cricket philosopher’s triumph

Kane Williamson stood with hands outstretched as an accurate throw from Martin Guptill ricocheted off a diving Ben Stokes’s bat and went for four in the 100th over of a sublime World Cup final at Lord’s on Sunday. If the ball had just found the keeper’s glove, or even

Cricket’s greatest celebration

‘The world’s greatest cricket celebration’ was the tagline for the 2019 World Cup in England and Wales. Yesterday, the catchy marketing slogan was proven true by two of the most deserving teams in champions England and runners-up New Zealand. The high

England’s cup of joy at last

Martin Guptill played a full ball on leg stump from Jofra Archer to deep midwicket. Two runs were needed off the last ball of the Super Over and he put in a desperate dive -- the second fateful one in less than half an hour -- to complete the second, but there was too

Battles within the battle

One of the two sides that qualified as the third and fourth-placed teams from the group stages will take home cricket’s most glittering trophy today at Lord’s. There will of course be talk about how India and Australia had played more consistent cricket before the semifinals

Kiwi resilience versus English aggression

Cricket’s global crown will find a new resting place today when perennial bridesmaids England and New Zealand square off in the 2019 World Cup final at Lord’s. By the end of the final, cricket will have first-time world champions for the first time since 1996, when Sri Lanka etched its name into cricketing folklore.

From cynicism to enjoyment

Before the World Cup began, West Indies legend Viv Richards said during a pre-tournament function that somewhere along the line, favourites England would mess it up.

Smith battles the Edgbaston cauldron

Deafening boos rang out when Steve Smith went out to bat, when he reached a fighting 50 and when he was finally run out through a brilliant direct hit from wicketkeeper Jos Buttler. The crowd reaction in Edgbaston felt cruel and unappreciative towards a great

Brave Kiwis overcome mighty India

A magnificent rearguard effort from India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja could not offset the early damage done by seamers Trent Boult and Matt Henry as New Zealand secured a second successive World Cup final berth with an 18-run win in a pulsating semifinal at Old Trafford yesterday.

Day 2, Session 1 wins it for Kiwis

The second morning, overcast conditions, two pacers steaming in, three slips and the ball talking up a storm as batsmen just try to survive. If fans of Test cricket were missing the sport’s most primal, stripped-bare format, Old Trafford was the place to be yesterday.

First semifinal to resume today

Rain was the major actor at Old Trafford yesterday, but unlike in the group stages it will probably not have the final say when the first World Cup semifinal between New Zealand and India will resume at 10:30 am (3:30 pm Bangladesh time) on the reserve day today. New Zealand will resume

The illusion of taking action

In the aftermath of an ultimately disappointing World Cup campaign which saw Bangladesh finish eighth in the 10-team table, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced on Monday that they would be parting ways with coach Steve Rhodes even though the

No table without Tigers

Fans may still be reeling from Bangladesh’s group-stage exit from the World Cup, but the real impact is borne by the touring journalists who are reduced to being nomads when the object we are chasing, the Bangladesh cricket team, is no longer setting the pace.

Battle for the middle overs

On paper it is a face-off between the group-stage champions and the team that made the last-four cut as the fourth member, but today’s World Cup semifinal at Old Trafford between India and New Zealand will pit sides more evenly matched than their table positions suggest.

The Kohli and Dhoni show

Coming from Bangladesh, the fanfare surrounding cricket and cricketers is par for the course, especially during big events. Media presence around the Bangladesh team, too, is one of the heaviest around the world. But there is a difference between ‘one of the heaviest’

India take on Kiwis in even battle

After more than five weeks of high-octane cricketing action, the 2019 World Cup has boiled down to three matches and four teams.

Mashrafe Bin Mortaza fielding Bangladesh vs Pakistan Match

‘We get down during partnerships’

“Fielding, it has been a concern all of my career. When there is a partnership, we get down,” Mashrafe said. “This is the part that a player can change. I think we really need to improve fielding.”

Tigers save their worst for the last

Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza’s World Cup career was brought to an inauspicious end as the Tigers saved their worst performance for their final 2019 World Cup match, which they lost to Pakistan by 94 runs at Lord’s yesterday.

Uncertainty abounds around Mashrafe

Speculation surrounding Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza’s future was given fresh life when the 35-year-old did not show up for the pre-match press conference at Lord’s yesterday, ahead of Bangladesh’s last World Cup game against Pakistan today. It was instead Bangladesh coach Steve Rhodes

Still worth a fight

A final match at Lord’s was what all of Bangladesh -- team and fans alike -- would have dreamed of before the World Cup started. However, instead of July 5, they would have been eyeing a final match on July 14.

Undaunted Tigers head for last stop

After their hard-fought and valiant World Cup campaign effectively came to an end when they lost to India by 28 runs on Tuesday, the Bangladesh team left Birmingham yesterday afternoon towards what will be their final stop on the World Cup trek, London.

A new level and a just result

To say it was the morning after a night of shattered dreams would be too dramatic. After exactly a month of chasing a target that seemed to move farther away with each strained step, Bangladesh’s semifinal hopes came to an end in a 28-run defeat to India in their

‘We were playing catch-up’

After shaking hands with the Indian cricketers, Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza ambled about towards the presentation ceremony, looking around at the emptying ground in Edgbaston.

Hoping, not expecting

When Rohit Sharma top-edged a pull off Mustafizur Rahman in the fifth over of the match and the ball ballooned to the left of deep

‘Have to play better than we have so far’

At the business end of a tournament, skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza was once more faced with an all-too-familiar hurdle. In the last two ICC 50-over tournaments,

Bangladesh’s star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was beaming in training yesterday

Tigers face steep odds in do-or-die match

At the end of the eight hours starting from 3:30pm today, a nation of cricket lovers will either rejoice or despair. Bangladesh will take on India in their penultimate World Cup group-stage game in Edgbaston needing a win against the form team of the competition to stay alive in the race for the semifinals.

Tigers back to business

The Bangladesh team got back to business with their first practice session after a five-day break at the practice ground in Edgbaston yesterday, with one eye on the India-England game taking place a stone’s throw away at the main venue.

Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and MS Dhoni Shares a light moment ahead Bangladesh vs India match

Tigers’ white whale

Bangladesh have worse results against other teams. They won only one of 21 matches against Australia and against Pakistan, they have won just five of 36. However, India remain the White Whale for the Tigers, not just because of a 5-29 win-loss ratio, but because in recent times India

Bangladesh Skipper Mashrafe Mortaza in Snodonia

Getaway, but no escape

Ahead Bangladesh vs India match Mashrafe Mortaza and his family opted for a day and a half of quiet repose in the rural comforts of the Welsh region of Snowdonia. Mashrafe reached the small town of Snowdon, a town in Gwynnedd county, built around Wales’s highest mountain bearing the same name.

March 30, 2020