Beware! Bangla Tigers are on the prowl

Bangladesh underlined their growing stature in international cricket by pulling off a stunning seven-wicket win over the West Indies in the ICC World Cup at Taunton on Monday. This was the Tigers’ second win over a higher-ranked One-Day International (ODI) team in this edition of the quadrennial showpiece having upset South Africa in their opening match.

Mashrafe Mortaza’s men have been on an upward curve ever since the last World Cup in 2015. Bangladesh had knocked England out en route to a quarterfinal berth in the last edition. They made it to the semifinals of the Champions Trophy in England a couple of years back. They also qualified for the final of last year’s Asia Cup in the UAE. It’s interesting to note that on all those three occasions it was India who ended the Tigers’ dream run.

Before the start of the World Cup, Mortaza - the flag-bearer of Bangladesh cricket – had made it clear that he wanted each one of his players to make sure the cricketing world took notice of their performance on the big stage. Well, his teammates have not let him down. Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh cricket’s biggest star, has been on a roll in the tournament so far. His brilliant unconquered 124 and his unbeaten 189-run stand with Liton Das (94 not out) for the fourth wicket helped them chase down a big target of 322 with consummate ease against the Windies. Shakib, who also picked up a couple of wickets and went past the 6,000-run mark in ODIs during the course of the match, was also the architect of their win over the Proteas earlier in the competition. Not surprisingly he was declared the man-of-the-match on both occasions.

Memorable wins

The Tigers have raised their game in the World Cups as wins over Pakistan (1999), India and South Africa (2007), and England (2011 and 2015) besides their heroics this year confirm.

Ahead of their league match against Bangladesh, England all-rounder Liam Plunkett had said that losing to the Tigers’ was no longer ‘a shock’. That statement demonstrated how much Bangladesh have improved over the last few years.

The seniors players - Mortaza, Shakib, Mushfiqur Rahim, Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah – have been great servants of Bangladesh cricket. Youngsters such as the wily medium-pacer Mustafizur Rahman, off-spinner Mehidy Hasan, pacer Mohammad Saifuddin and rising star Liton Das complement the seniors well.

It’s indeed fair to say Bangladesh is the best Asian side in the shorter format after India, especially with Pakistan and Sri Lanka struggling to be consistent. With five points from as many matches, Bangladesh have an outside chance of qualifying for the semifinals of the ongoing tournament. Irrespective of whether they make it to the semifinals or not, Mortaza and Co. have done well to earn the respect of the cricket world. That itself is a big achievement.