Bangladesh cricket: From brickbat to bouquet !

It has been a unique case of stark contrast. Even the Bangladesh cricket team members probably could not foresee such a U-turn as far as their treatment by the cricket lovers are concerned. The other day, they suffered one of the worst defeat in the one-day performance when they went down to the West Indies in Mirpur Cricket ground in a humiliating manner. Indeed, it was an inglorious capitulation when the fans jeered at the team members and the dignity of the nation as a fast-developing cricket side was terribly shattered. Many spectators had left the ground in utter disgust and anger while countless cricket lovers glued before the television sets watched with shock and anguish the defeat of their team in a manner that few had anticipated. Some broke the television sets in a fit of anger while there were reports that many fans were on the verge of tears and some literally broke into tears. But Chittagong as a venue, turned out to be propitious for the home team, also the co-hosts with India and Sri Lanka, as they accomplished two resounding wins there bringing laurels for the nation. Bangladesh first defeated Ireland, though not a cricket power as such to reckon with, but not "minnows" either because of the increasingly better showing by the side. Then came home team's glorious victory against England, which is the current world champion of shortest version of the game --the 20 overs matches. England came to the tournament flying high and was considered as one of the favourites for the current cup, but suffered setbacks along achievements. Bangladesh was on the brink of being eliminated from the next round, but the win against England kept its hopes alive for the Bangladesh team for the quarter finals level. The Bangladesh-England encounter was a real entertainer as fortunes fluctuated and both sides appeared to be heading towards the much-cherished victory at different stages. But eventually, it was Bangladesh which had the last laugh. The manner in which the finale came was something close to melo-dramatic. The rear-guard of Bangladesh side rather uncharacteristically, presented the nation the precious gift of victory amidst a tense situation of great expectation. When Bangladesh lost eight wickets chasing the England score with still a long way to go, few had foreseen a Bangladesh victory because that was the reality. But Shaful Islam, essentially a bowler, who is performing well in his area of duty, came out so well with the bat that he was the "Hero" of the match along with Imrul Quayes, the opener. Quayes was particularly splendid in both the victories with a sound batting tally. It was a Friday and the match between Bangladesh and England was very significant because of permutations and combinations leading to Bangladesh's chances of playing in next round. When England were heading for the victory, silence prevailed in the stadium and scores watching or listening in electronic media were forlorn and almost gave up hope of a Bangladesh win. But our tail-enders pulled off a great surprise by handing down the much desired victory. An ambience of joy and delight pervaded everywhere with many exploding into unbridled merriment. I was with some old friends in the district town of Manikganj for an overnight stay at the invitation of a close friend Haji Iqbal Khan. As the Bangladesh victory came amidst high thrill, the nearly sleeply town suddenly came to life at that late hours of the evening. Our hosts Iqbal owns the famous "Ambala" sweet chain shop and he lost no time in giving a message to his men to distribute sweets from the shops to persons close to him in celebrations of the achievement. For the Bangladesh team - it was expression of love and admiration for the Tigers! Indeed, from brickbat to bouquet. It happens not only for the politicians, but fittingly for others as well and truly for "Our Tigers"! E-mail : zaglulbss@yahoo.com