Bitter sweet 2014 for Bangladesh cricket

Bangladesh cricket team experienced a mixed bag of win-loss chemistry in the outgoing year (2014) that included a few international records and witnessed some talismanic events, reports UNB.

The Tigers suffered embarrassing win drought from the beginning of the year before whitewashing visiting Zimbabwe at the end in a 3-match Test and a 5-match ODI series (November-December).

After a relatively good year in 2013, the Tigers started 2014 with a full series at home against Sri Lanka and ended up losing 0-1 in 2-match Test, whitewashed in both ODIs (0-3) and T20Is (0-2) series.

Then followed a series of defeats against Asian Cricketing nations- India, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Sri Lanka-in the Asia Cup 2014 league matches, conducted on home soil with the highlight: loss to ICC associate member Afghanistan and finishing bottom of the table losing 0-4.

Bangladesh, however, ended their winless run for 11 matches in 2014 defeating two associates-Afghanistan and Nepal-in consecutive T20Is at the World T20 2014 Qualifying round, but lost to another associate member Hong Kong. But in the Super-10, Bangladesh lost all (0-4) their matches.

Amid such a situation, Bangladesh head coach Shane Jurgensen resigned from his position less than a month after the World T20I.

On May 19, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) appointed a new head coach, Chandika Hathurusingha, who was a former Sri Lanka batsman, for a two-year period.

Under the new coach at home, Bangladesh again lost the first 3-match ODI series (2-0) against a second string team of India. Tigers lost to visitors in the first and second ODI under D/L method (in the 2nd match BD scored the lowest 58 runs in ODI-a repeat of the identical score against West Indies in Dhaka in March 2011) while the 3rd ODI was washed out.

In the middle of 2014, on July 7, the most unexpected incident was the BCB ban all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan for six months from all forms of cricket along with an embargo on issuing NOC to play cricket league abroad till December 2015 over serious misbehavior with new coach Chandika Hathurusingha and altercation with a spectator during the 1st ODI against India in Mirpur on June 15.

On July 20, Shakib appealed to the BCB to reconsider his suspension along with making a public apology.

Shakib returned to cricket for Bangladesh against Zimbabwe on September 15 as the BCB reduced his ban by three and a half months on August 26.The all-rounder has also been included in the Bangladesh preliminary squad for ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.

Finally, the embargo on NOC for playing cricket in foreign leagues ended on December 4 and Shakib is now expected to leave for Australia on January 4 to play for Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League, which began December 18, on January 7, 10, 13 and 19.

Bangladesh toured West Indies for a full series in August 2014. West Indies beat Bangladesh 3-0 in the ODI series to extend the Tigers' win-less run for 13 matches in ODI format while the only T20 was abandoned.

The Tigers tasted victory during Zimbabwe's tour of Bangladesh where they whitewashed the visitors 3-0 in the Test series with all rounder Shakib Al Hasan's record 10-wicket haul and a century in a Test match.

After that result, Bangladesh claimed the 9th place pushing Zimbabwe to 10 in the ICC Test ranking list.

Bangladesh also whitewashed visiting Zimbabwe in the 5-match ODI series, which was their first ever 5-0 win record in ODI format, led by Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, the newly engaged regular ODI captain for Bangladesh.

As of 2 December 2014, Bangladesh played 88 Tests with seven wins, 11 draws and 70 losses. In 2014, Bangladesh played 7 Test matches.

The Tigers played 41 Twenty20 Internationals, 15 in 2014, with 11 wins, 29 losses and one no result. Bangladesh is currently ranked the 9th in ODI while 10th in the T20I in ICC ranking list.