Bangladesh turn a corner

CHENNAI: When Steve Finn was trapped leg-before by Mehedi Hasan Miraz to ring in Bangladesh's maiden win over England in Tests at Mirpur on Sunday, it ushered in a new era in the home team's Test sojourn which started against India back in 2000. For a side which has taken giant strides in limited-overs cricket in the last few years, the win against England couldn't have been timed better.

The Mushfiqur Rahim-led side went down to England in the opening Test at Chittagong by 22 runs, and Bangladesh had to script a turnaround in order to level the series. That's exactly what they did. For Habibul Bashar, former captain and current national selector, f the win is one of the best days in

Bangladesh cricket

. “I will remember this day for a very long time. When I was part of the team that played Bangladesh's inaugural Test 16 seasons ago, I never thought we would see this day. Nothing tastes sweeter than winning a Test and that too against a top-quality side such as England. A win of this magnitude is bound to give us confidence when we tour New Zealand in the coming weeks for a Test series,” Bashar told TOI on Sunday.

Bashar, who was instrumental in drafting Mehedi into the side, couldn't stop raving about the young offspinner who triggered England's collapse. “He has been performing brilliantly in U-19 cricket, and once given a chance at the highest level -Mehedi hasn't disappointed at all. What has impressed us most is his maturity as not many will believe he turned 19 just a few days ago,” stressed Bashar.

Mehedi, who hails from Khulna district in Bangladesh, is not only a handy offspinner but also a decent bat. Mehedi, whose father used to work as was a lorry driver, is an admirer of former India offspinner Romesh Powar. “Mehedi's success gives us hope that we can compete with bigger teams on a consistent basis irrespective of the format. More than anything else, the win against England has given us tremendous self-belief,” opined Bashar.

Former skipper Mohammad Ashraful, who returned to domestic cricket after serving a three-year suspension sentence for match-fixing, feels Bangladesh have learnt the art of delivering the sucker punch. “Earlier, on many occasions we came close to winning Tests, but have failed to seal the deal. Not this time. I watched each session in the series and can proudly say that Bangladesh cricket has turned a new corner. Most importantly, after this performance - I don't think any team will take us lightly in any format of the game,” Ashraful mentioned.

Perhaps, the biggest compliment for Bangladesh came from the rival camp as England skipper Alastair Cook stated: “You can see their (Bangladesh's) development. At home they will be a tough side to beat. They have a lot of good spinners. It's not easy for me to say, but it's a good win for Bangladesh cricket,” Cook said.

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