Samsul Arefin Khan

For more than five months, pace bowler Anamul Haque had to patiently wait for an opportunity to play a professional game.

Experienced Bangladesh batter Sharmin Akhter Supta made a sensational return to the national side as she struck a career-best 89-ball 96 in the Tigresses’ record 154-run win over Ireland in the first of three ODIs in Mirpur yesterday. Had she not been caught at mid-off while trying to ratchet up the scoring rate in the latter stage of the innings, Supta could have become only the second Bangladeshi woman batter to score an ODI hundred after Fargana Hoque, who scored both the ODI hundreds for Bangladesh. Playing her first international game since July 2023, she also had cramps while fielding which forced her to leave the ground. After the match, the 28-year-old batter talked to The Daily Star’s Samsul Arefin Khan regarding her comeback, preparation, and yesterday’s match-winning knock. The excerpts of the interview are as follows:

Head coach Rajin Saleh represented Sylhet for nearly 20 years but never won the NCL as a player.

Pacer Rana’s return to the field was far from easy.

While Ireland had recently beat England and Sri Lanka, the hosts are winless this year and last played a 50-over match in March.

The 23-year-old tops the run charts in the ongoing NCL with 567 runs in eight innings, averaging 81, including his maiden double century and consecutive centuries.

Even after 24 years since Bangladesh's first Test, the persistent problems of poor batting and substandard wickets in the domestic circuit, evidenced in the National Cricket League’s (NCL) fifth-round fixtures, highlight why the national team continues to struggle in the red-ball format.

Iftekhar Rahman Mithu, chairman of BCB's umpires' committee for the last three years, in an interview with The Daily Star's Samsul Arefin Khan, expressed his concern regarding the recent increase in code of conduct violations by players in the ongoing National Cricket League while also admitting umpiring errors that have led to such a rise. Here are the excerpts of the interview:

While talking about Bangladesh cricket, many often lament that despite being a Test nation for around two-and-a-half decades, the country has failed to cultivate a domestic cricket culture. This assertion, however, is not quite true.

Mahmudullah Riyad fell in the nervous nineties for the first time in his international career, but not before the veteran smashed a brilliant run-a-ball 98 to propel Bangladesh to 244 for eight in the series-deciding third ODI against Afghanistan in Sharjah yesterday.

"In this World Cup, it’s going to be a bit different. There are a couple of all-rounders in the team. It all depends on how these players respond against stronger teams," said Naveed.

David Hemp has been Bangladesh's batting coach for the past eight months, with 14 months remaining on his contract, but now faces criticism after recent batting failures against India and South Africa.

When Bangladesh finished Day 2 of their second and series-deciding Test against South Africa in Chattogram at 38 for four in their first innings on Wednesday, doubts seeped in whether the Tigers would be able to survive the entire third day with their remaining 16 wickets in both innings.

It seems the Bangladesh national cricket team is on a mission to break all sorts of records in Tests, well, at least the ignominious ones. They hit a new low yesterday when they conceded an innings and 273-run defeat to South Africa in the second and final Test to suffer a 2-0 clean-sweep in Chattogram.

Like Bangladesh batters failed to keep their shape on Day 2 of their second Test against South Africa in Chattogram yesterday, the Tigers’ spin-bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed also was unable to maintain his neutral narrative when he attended the press conference following the day’s play.

Bangladesh’s struggle in Tests, compounded by poor fan engagement and stadium conditions, raises questions about Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) commitment to fostering a strong cricket culture.

A penchant for opting for a safe approach once again forced Bangladesh onto the backfoot on the opening day of their series-deciding second and final Test against South Africa in Chattogram yesterday.

Former South Africa captain Ashwell Prince is currently working as the batting coach of his country. The 47-year-old had previously worked with Bangladesh as a batting consultant from August 2021 to February 2022, but resigned from his position with nine months still left on his contract.

Bangladesh will look to bounce back in Chattogram during the series-concluding second Test against South Africa, scheduled to start today, in an attempt to avoid a series defeat against a SENA country on home soil after 14 years.

The opening round of the National Cricket League (NCL) 2024-25 witnessed some notable performances from both the batters and bowlers, but it was Rajshahi Division opener Sabbir Hossain who stood out with his first-class career-best 150 off 139 balls against Khulna Division during his side’s second innings at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium.