Why we should beat the drum for Bangladesh
Tanya Aldred on this summer's other cricket tourists
Monday April 25, 2005
The Guardian
Medieval Europeans thought paradise lay over the mouth of the Ganges. The cricket world does not see things the same way. Some time in the next two weeks - the actual date is still uncertain - Bangladesh fly into Heathrow for possibly the least anticipated cricket tour in history.
England's first Test visitors of the summer start their warm-up against the British Universities at Fenners on May 10, but already this country's mind is on the Ashes, the Ashes and the Ashes. County cricket reports are dominated by the form of Australians or potential England batsmen who might combat Glenn McGrath. In interviews England players are asked about the possibility of overwhelming the world champions in late August. None dwell much on the team flying in from Dhaka.
Even a visit by Zimbabwe, battling it out with Bangladesh in cricket's dingy basement, gets some publicity - if only of the anti-Mugabe kind. But Bangladesh's problems are overlooked. Natural disasters, yet another flood, or yet another monsoon; a literacy rate of 43%; a criticised human rights record.
Poor Bangladesh, once the flourishing artistic arm of the subcontinent, is now seen as the poor stepbrother of superpower India. The home of the Bengal tiger, the longest beach and the largest littoral mangrove forest in the world does not get a good press.
Of course their cricket record is abysmal. A succession of crushing defeats has prompted calls for Test cricket to be split into two divisions. But things don't look so bad when you compare them to India and New Zealand at a similar stage. Bangladesh gained Test status in November 2000 and won their first Test and series - against a weakened Zimbabwe - in January. It had taken four years and 35 Tests. New Zealand took 45 matches and 26 years to win a game, and India 25 games over 19 years. And neither of them had the pressure of a Test schedule that spares no blushes for the weak.
What bodes well for Bangladesh is the sheer volume and enthusiasm of their cricket following. Over 138 million live in the world's most densely populated country. Within minutes of Bangladesh's first Test win, Dhaka was swamped with thousands of drumming, flag-waving fans. A similar celebration followed when they shocked Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup and the nation was on the edge of a street party when they came within a rice grain of beating the same opposition in a Test last September.
It is unlikely they will win their first overseas Test this summer. The ECB has designed the toughest schedule possible for their debut Test tour here. Their batsmen, uneasy against the moving ball, will probably be greeted by seaming pitches at Chester-le-Street and Lord's. This will be followed by a triangular one-day tournament. The third side is Australia, leaving Bangladesh as the limp lettuce in a crispy baguette. Perhaps it is all revenge for England's tour two years ago when the team flew into a torrential downpour and were nearly embarrassed at Dhaka.
So the chances of Bangladesh making an impact are minimal. Even their one trump card, Dav Whatmore, may be out of commission by the time the series begins. Last week the coach signed a two-year extension to his contract but remains "very interested" in the juicier job with India.
The ECB should be praised for their choice of venues - tickets are selling fast at the Riverside, mainly for the prospect of Steve Harmison rattling through the tourists, and a Lord's Test is still unforgettable. It is just a shame they will find the conditions so alien. Had it not been for television demands (it would have made more sense to play the Ashes earlier (incidentally before Shane Warne could exploit the dry pitches) and host Bangladesh at the end of August - when they had a chance of making a noise over the din of the Ashes.
But it is we who need to show the most patience and understanding: to put on hold the Ashes obsession and enjoy what is here. Habibul Bashar is leading a young team eager to learn and one that will have thousands of keen supporters here. Less than six years ago we were the worst Test nation in the world - but we still wanted, and expected, our voice to be heard.
Monday April 25, 2005
The Guardian
Medieval Europeans thought paradise lay over the mouth of the Ganges. The cricket world does not see things the same way. Some time in the next two weeks - the actual date is still uncertain - Bangladesh fly into Heathrow for possibly the least anticipated cricket tour in history.
England's first Test visitors of the summer start their warm-up against the British Universities at Fenners on May 10, but already this country's mind is on the Ashes, the Ashes and the Ashes. County cricket reports are dominated by the form of Australians or potential England batsmen who might combat Glenn McGrath. In interviews England players are asked about the possibility of overwhelming the world champions in late August. None dwell much on the team flying in from Dhaka.
Even a visit by Zimbabwe, battling it out with Bangladesh in cricket's dingy basement, gets some publicity - if only of the anti-Mugabe kind. But Bangladesh's problems are overlooked. Natural disasters, yet another flood, or yet another monsoon; a literacy rate of 43%; a criticised human rights record.
Poor Bangladesh, once the flourishing artistic arm of the subcontinent, is now seen as the poor stepbrother of superpower India. The home of the Bengal tiger, the longest beach and the largest littoral mangrove forest in the world does not get a good press.
Of course their cricket record is abysmal. A succession of crushing defeats has prompted calls for Test cricket to be split into two divisions. But things don't look so bad when you compare them to India and New Zealand at a similar stage. Bangladesh gained Test status in November 2000 and won their first Test and series - against a weakened Zimbabwe - in January. It had taken four years and 35 Tests. New Zealand took 45 matches and 26 years to win a game, and India 25 games over 19 years. And neither of them had the pressure of a Test schedule that spares no blushes for the weak.
What bodes well for Bangladesh is the sheer volume and enthusiasm of their cricket following. Over 138 million live in the world's most densely populated country. Within minutes of Bangladesh's first Test win, Dhaka was swamped with thousands of drumming, flag-waving fans. A similar celebration followed when they shocked Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup and the nation was on the edge of a street party when they came within a rice grain of beating the same opposition in a Test last September.
It is unlikely they will win their first overseas Test this summer. The ECB has designed the toughest schedule possible for their debut Test tour here. Their batsmen, uneasy against the moving ball, will probably be greeted by seaming pitches at Chester-le-Street and Lord's. This will be followed by a triangular one-day tournament. The third side is Australia, leaving Bangladesh as the limp lettuce in a crispy baguette. Perhaps it is all revenge for England's tour two years ago when the team flew into a torrential downpour and were nearly embarrassed at Dhaka.
So the chances of Bangladesh making an impact are minimal. Even their one trump card, Dav Whatmore, may be out of commission by the time the series begins. Last week the coach signed a two-year extension to his contract but remains "very interested" in the juicier job with India.
The ECB should be praised for their choice of venues - tickets are selling fast at the Riverside, mainly for the prospect of Steve Harmison rattling through the tourists, and a Lord's Test is still unforgettable. It is just a shame they will find the conditions so alien. Had it not been for television demands (it would have made more sense to play the Ashes earlier (incidentally before Shane Warne could exploit the dry pitches) and host Bangladesh at the end of August - when they had a chance of making a noise over the din of the Ashes.
But it is we who need to show the most patience and understanding: to put on hold the Ashes obsession and enjoy what is here. Habibul Bashar is leading a young team eager to learn and one that will have thousands of keen supporters here. Less than six years ago we were the worst Test nation in the world - but we still wanted, and expected, our voice to be heard.
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