Abdullah Al Mehdi

Bangladesh make a return to the ODI format today having last played a 50-over game in July last year and although half a year has passed since the last ODI, Bangladesh looked quietly confident heading into the series during their practice session at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium yesterday.

The national selectors made wholesale changes to the ODI side for Bangladesh's upcoming series against Afghanistan, slated to begin from February 23 with the first ODI in Chattogram.

It was the penultimate delivery of the final over of the Khulna Tigers innings and everything had come to a head since Chattogram Challengers began their BPL campaign, cascading towards that penultimate delivery yesterday.

Two pulsating games, each with their own themes and surprises in store, played out yesterday in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and

As the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) heads towards the closing stages, the upcoming Afghanistan series, slated to begin with the ODI series on February 23, starts to come into view.

There was joy and jubilation on one side, a clutter of youthful energy converging and coming through. At the other side of things,

The pitch at the Hagley Oval threw specific challenges at Bangladesh which the Tigers are not yet close to unraveling after day two of the Christchurch Test.

Bangladesh finally found the resolve, mental depth and proper approach to overcome a 20-year old hurdle and win a first match in any format in New Zealand, clinching the first Test at Mount Maunganui on January 5.

For the first time, Bangladesh put a real meaning to the nickname ‘Tigers’ in red-ball cricket away from home and it was all thanks to a sudden uprising from the pace unit in favourable conditions.

Bangladesh eclipsed the peak of their cricketing excellence, going against the grain of their past efforts in New Zealand to clinch their very first win against the hosts by an eight-wicket margin.

For four days, Bangladesh have managed to stay on top of a New Zealand side known for their Test capabilities and a rare excitement coursed the side, unseen especially away from home in Test cricket.

Interest in youth level or age-level cricket in the country is casual at best but when an international trophy comes around, the expectations of a success-starved nation amplifies.

The recent tumult in the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is not far removed from the usual. Despite not yet being assigned a department following the BCB elections, Akram Khan has revealed that he wants to step down from his previous role as cricket operations chairman.

There have been insinuations, remarks and opinions regarding all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan’s involvement in Test cricket from the media, cricket experts and even board officials.

Light to moderately heavy drizzles marred proceedings on the second day, with only 6.2 overs possible before play was called off at 3:00pm yesterday.

ICC’s new Test Championship cycle begins for Bangladesh today with the first Test against Pakistan at Chattogram and it also introduces the beginning of a jam-packed Test schedule through to the end of 2022 for the Tigers.

The body language of any sports team on the field is a good indicator of where the side stands mentally and from the beginning of the recently concluded World Cup, Bangladesh side have painted a picture of falling heads and dropping shoulders. Coming into the T20I series at home against Pakistan, the crisis appears to have deepened with captain Mahmudullah Riyad unable to facilitate the mental changes that are basic in the modern game.

Bangladesh Cricket Board’s attempt to restructure and reshape the T20 outfit following the World Cup debacle may appear a logical thing on surface, but a deeper look into the six changes made to the squad can only raise question marks over the whole process.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) revamp of the T20 side following the World Cup debacle in UAE involved quite a few changes, with the experienced Mushfiqur Rahim along with openers Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar making way for relatively new faces.

Bangladesh face South Africa today with the Tigers’ hopes all but gone following three straight losses to Sri Lanka, England and West Indies in the Super 12 stage.