Tigers ‘taking in’ history

In Bangladesh, cricket is not just a sport, but rather a spirit. It is something that connects every household, every community, and is a language every Bangladeshi knows how to speak. It is one thing that has the power to keep millions of viewers glued to their screens and feel the surge of adrenaline rush at the same time.

And with Bangladesh making waves in cricket and creating moments that will forever be etched in our hearts and memoires, here are the top five most memorable moments of Bangladesh cricket.

Qualifying for the 1999 World Cup and winning ICC Trophy 1997

Albeit having played their first international game in the 1980s, Bangladesh had to wait for their World Cup qualification for over a decade. After making it to the final of the ICC Trophy 1997, Bangladesh secured a spot in the 1999 World Cup. The semi-final against the Netherlands where Akram Khan's heroic performance left the entire nation in joyful tears.

It was a difficult match to watch as Bangladesh initially lost four wickets with only 14 runs, adding to this was a very unfavourable rainy weather. However, the situation took an impressive turn when, towards the final over, the target was achieved and Bangladesh won the match, qualifying themselves for the 1999 World Cup.

Beating Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup

Another momentous glory was when Bangladesh beat Pakistan during the 1999 World Cup. That year, the Tigers were led by the legendary Akram Khan, where the team ended up beating Pakistan by 62 runs, vastly owing to the team effort by Shahriar Hossain and captain Akram Khan, eventually having the Pakistan Team all out by 161 runs.

It was an unbelievable sight to witness, when even before recapping the last wicket and making the final verdict, the crowd was on the ground cheering for Bangladesh! This victory felt like winning beyond cricket and gave Bangladeshis all over the country the true taste of joy. 

The Banglawash

Who does not remember the unforgettable Banglawash in 2010? This series between Bangladesh and New Zealand will always be known and remembered among the Bangladesh cricket fraternity as "Banglawash" as it was a series where Bangladesh clean swept the opponent, winning all matches.

After winning the One Day International series, Bangladesh continued to win the rest of the matches, and this victory remains as one of the greatest achievements for Bangladesh cricket to this day. It was also the series where Rubel Hossain made a mark in the international scene and Bangladesh discovered a gem of a bowler.

Photo: ACC

Bangladesh women cricket win Asia Cup

Bangladesh cricket truly is an example of how cricket brings a nation together, undivided by gender. During the Asia Cup 2018, Bangladesh Women's Cricket Team celebrated massive victory as they defeated India in the final, enabling Bangladesh to achieve its maiden trophy in a multi-team tournament.

The match neared an intense end in the last over where nine runs were required, with Rumana Ahmed and Sanjida Islam batting. In an unprecedented turn of events, with fours and a wicket, the match ended with Jahanara Alam securing the final run. This was a massive and memorable win for the Bangladesh Women's Cricket Team.

Bangladesh losing to Pakistan in Asia Cup 2012    

Not all memorable moments of cricket are associated with winning a match — sometimes the memory of a loss in the field, especially in our own land stays reserved within our hearts for years. Such was the case in Asia Cup 2012, when Bangladesh needed only 9 runs in the last over to win against Pakistan in the final round.

The match took an intense nail-biting finish by the time of the final delivery when Bangladesh was short of four runs. Being so close to claiming the cup and what seemed like an inevitable victory for Bangladesh throughout their batsmanship quickly turned into defeat as Pakistan ended up winning by two runs. Although Bangladesh did not win the match that time, the Tigers won the hearts of the nation. 

Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar has predicted the four teams he believes will reach the semi-finals of the Cricket World Cup 2023 in India.

Tendulkar tipped the four semi-finalists while speaking to the ICC at the start of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 after carrying the trophy out onto the pitch to signal the start of the event in India.

"It was a surreal experience to carry that trophy out on the field," Tendulkar said.

"We ended up playing here, a quarter-final against Australia, and that night was a special night for us. To come back here, same stadium, 12 years down the line…

"Something nice has happened actually. Before 2011, no host nation had won the tournament. Post that, all home nations have won. India's hosting so, keeping those fingers crossed."

The World Cup winner believes that India can repeat their historic effort on home soil from 2011.

"I hope so, because our team is playing good cricket, and if the team continues to keep things simple and stick to basics, they have the ammunition," Tendulkar said.

"We've got strong batting line-up, a very good all-round bowling attack, we have good balance."

As for the four teams that Tendulkar believes that the host nation are certain to make the semi-finals.

"India without any doubt. We have a very, very good, balanced team," Tendulkar told Tanvi Shah, ICC's Digital Insider.

"So is the case with Australia, I feel they have a balanced team.

"The third one I would say would be England. England again are a very strong team, a combination of experience and some new faces.

"My fourth team would be New Zealand. They have played the finals in 2015 and 2019. If you look at their track record, New Zealand in world championships have always done well and I see them getting to the semis."

The Black Caps started their tournament well, supporting Tendulkar's assertion that they perform well in World Cups by hammering England by nine wickets in the opening match of the World Cup.

Tendulkar's third pick, England, have work to do, although they did qualify for the final four in 2019 despite losing three matches, and went on to win the tournament.

Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty praised her batters' performance after their seven-wicket win over Pakistan in the final ODI of the three-match series at the at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Friday.

The win gave the Tigresses a 2-1 series win and propelled them to sixth on the ICC Women's Championships standings.
 
 The top six teams on the table will qualify for the 2025 World Cup directly, while the other two spots will be filled through qualifiers, in the eight-team tournament which will take place in India.
 
 Bangladesh have 11 points from 12 matches, with three wins, a solitary tie, four losses and as many no results.

"We are moving ahead keeping in mind that we want to avoid playing in the [World Cup] qualifiers. The more points we can collect, the better our chances will become to play the tournament directly. Our focus is just that going into every series," skipper Nigar Sultana Joty told the reporters after the game yesterday.

A poor batting display let Bangladesh down in the opening match last week when they were bundled out for 81, while bowlers bailed them out in the second match where they posted 169. The batters finally showed up yesterday as a record 125-run opening partnership for Bangladesh from Murshida Khatun and Fargana Haque set up a 167-run chase.
 
Fargana scored a 113-ball 62 as she put away five fours while Musrshida hit six boundaries during her 106-ball 54. Both, however, couldn't see their team through as the services of skipper Joty were required. She scored a 25-ball 18 and was aptly aided by Sobhana Mostary's 30-ball 19 as the duo wrapped it up for Bangladesh.
 

"The batting department responded well. In the previous match, Pakistan struggled to chase a small total but the same did not happen today which is why we clinched an easy victory," Joty said.
 
 "The way Murshida and Pinky were playing, I think they should've finished the match. They were at the wicket for a long time and our plan is for set batters to always play as long as possible.
 
 "The first match was indeed alarming for us. The biggest thing for us is the series win, it is a big achievement for us. The show of character from the entire team is a huge success," she added.

The Bangladesh bowlers did the job again for their side, restricting the visitors to 166 for nine. 

Pakistan's opener Sidra Ameen scored an unbeaten 143-ball 84 but had little support as Bangladesh's left-arm orthodox Nahida Akter outshone the four other spinners in the side, picking up three wickets for 26 runs, while Rabeya Khan scalped two.

Bangladesh skipper Nigar Sultana Joty jested saying she wasn't looking forward to any more Super Overs after Bangladesh pulled off a series-saving win in the second ODI of the three-match series against Pakistan at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur yesterday.

Nigar and Co clinched the match in a Super Over thriller where they chased down eight, with the skipper hitting the winning runs with a lofted drive down the ground when Bangladesh needed two runs off the final delivery bowled by left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu. The win kept the series alive at 1-1, with the finale scheduled to take place on Thursday at the same venue.

"I think this is a very big experience, a learning one. This might happen to us at a stage like the World Cup. So, we would know how to respond to such situations by trying, learning, and playing. But I don't want any more Super Overs," Joty told reporters in the post-match press conference yesterday.

Player-of-the-match Nigar helped her side post 169 for nine in 50 overs with a 104-ball 54. She was in the thick of things on the field as well, completing two stumpings and a couple of run-outs.

"I saw the field setup first. I play the slog-sweep quite well. When I saw that square-leg was up, I was thinking whether to go over or not," the captain said while explaining her thought process during the crunch moments.

"Then my thoughts were about hitting straight, anywhere down the ground because the fielders were placed wide. I really like to loft the ball and when I saw that mid-off was up, I just went for it. It was a gamble as I couldn't connect well in the previous 50 overs. When I saw the fielder was up, I just played straight," she added.

Pakistan openers Sadaf Shamas and Sidra Ameen gave their side a steady start with a 41-run stand before off-spinner Nishita Akter Nishi and leggie Fahima Khatun got rid of them.

One of the three leg-spinners in Bangladesh's rank, Rabeya Khan took out three of Pakistan's first five batters, including skipper Nida Dar, who top-scored with a 47-ball 27, to bundle out the visitors for 169 with one ball to spare, taking the match to a Super Over contest.

Saud Shakeel was nowhere near World Cup selection three months ago but a thrilling half-century in Friday's win over the Netherlands underlined his remarkable and rapid rise up the cricketing ladder.

Shakeel actually made his ODI debut in England in 2021 but he was largely out of the reckoning until he cracked an impressive double century in a Test in Sri Lanka in July.

The diminutive 28-year-old, originally seen as a Test specialist, was included in Pakistan's squad for the three-match series against Afghanistan in August but he played only one match where he scored just nine.

The team management, however, led by strategy and analytics manager Hasan Cheema and manager Rehan-ul Haq, backed him and convinced chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq to retain him for the Asia Cup.

Pakistan crashed out of the tournament with defeats against India and Sri Lanka in the tournament.

Perhaps not playing in a single match did Shakeel a favour -- he was included in the 15-man World Cup squad in place of allrounder Faheem Ashraf.

Shakeel showed glimpses of what he can do in the warm-up match against New Zealand with a gritty 53-ball 75.

On Friday, he became the toast of Pakistan's batting with an innings-reviving 52-ball 68 studded with a six and nine boundaries, guiding Pakistan to a fighting 282 after a precarious 38-3.

"I am very pleased to help my team win," said Shakeel at the post-match ceremony. "I tried to follow my basics and be positive for my team despite having early nerves."

Shakeel added 120 for the fourth wicket with Mohammad Rizwan who also scored 68.

Pakistan then dismissed the Netherlands for 205 in 41 overs to kick-start their World Cup campaign with an 81-run win.

Shakeel admitted he was lucky at the start.

"I was lucky to get early boundaries," said the left-hander. "We (with Rizwan) discussed that the pressure would transfer if we score, which did happen."

'Next big star' 

Before his Test baptism against England in December last year, former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed had predicted Shakeel would make his mark.

"Shakeel has the skill and temperament to become a successful star," Sarfaraz said last year. "Take my word, Shakeel will be the next big star for Pakistan."

Shakeel was the stand-out performer for Pakistan in an otherwise 3-0 annihilation by England who carried on their fiery Bazball approach of demolishing the opponents.

Shakeel scored 346 in six innings -- second highest from Pakistan after Babar Azam's 348.

An unbeaten maiden Test century against New Zealand in Karachi in January put him on track but the double hundred against Sri Lanka changed his Wold Cup fortunes.

So consistent has been Shakeel's scoring that he became the first batter in Test cricket's 146-year history to pass 50 in each of his first seven Tests: his remarkable record, in fact, stands at six half-centuries and two centuries at a Bradmanesque average of 87.50.

"I've been working hard," said Shakeel. "I knew I'd be batting No. 5, I tried to improve my shots, attacking options and be brave. The coaching staff has given me confidence."

And he duly dedicated his man-of-the-match award to his domestic team coach Hanif Malik.