When a cat's purr turned into a tiger's roar

This wasn’t a shocker afterall

When Bangladesh whitewashed Zimbabwe 5-0 in December last year, nobody batted an eyelid. Then at the 2015 ICC World Cup, another feather was added to their cap when they knocked England out of the group stage to book a ticket in the knockout stages for themselves.

But then it was deemed that English Cricket had reached its lowest ebb in limited overs cricket and Bangladesh had been at the right place and the right time to cash in. That however, did not stop this juggernaut and a Pakistani team in transition was blanked 3-0 in a series at home which left the crowd in a frenzy. There was better yet to come.

A month later, a full strength Indian squad arrived to arrest this Bangladeshi momentum. However, shockwaves were sent through the cricketing fraternity when Bangladesh took an unassailable 2-0 lead over India in a 3 match series and people started to believe that this nation who got recognition from the ICC as a Test-playing nation in 1999 had finally started punching above their weight instead of pulling off ‘fluke’ victories.

The ‘specialists’ in the Indian ODI side fell like a pack of cards against the relatively inexperienced but highly motivated youngsters in the Bangladeshi team. India did manage to bring their A-game in the dead rubber and beat Bangladesh comprehensively, but the damage had already been done and the message had been sent loud and clear. A spot in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy had been sealed.

For 15 long years, fans of Bangladesh Cricket had been waiting to see a team that could challenge the mighty teams in International Cricket and not only give them a tough fight but also emerge victorious.

Biggest statement

For all those who thought that Bangladesh were still pushovers could try their luck to shove them with all their force. Even after such remarkable change in fortunes if there were any doubts in anyone’s minds, they were swept aside by the same way in which this very team swept aside the Proteas in an admirable comeback to win another ODI series 2-1 after being humbled in the first game.

It seemed after the first game that their fairytale run had come to end against a clinical South African team but it all changed and Bangladesh were back in the zone to dominate (and I mean literally dominated) the other two ODIs to clinch the series.

Bangladesh had announced themselves on the cricketing map long ago but now they are starting to leave indelible imprints for people to take notice. I don’t remember the last time I thought of Bangladesh as a major competitor and a threat to the usual suspects in ICC Tournaments.

Maybe once during the phase during the 2012 Asia Cup where they narrowly lost the finals to Pakistan but the team soon lost steam after that and were back to their usual selves of the early 2000s. But now when I look at this Bangla side, they sure as hell give out vibes of finally having shed the tags of ‘minnows’ and look equipped and efficient to win a series abroad too, after all the historic World Cup win against England came on a non-subcontinent pitch in Australia.

Fearless brand of Cricket

There was a time when they were a conservative side looking to take their chances against the big boys if they ever got one. But now they have new young players who are part of an exciting generation playing a fearless brand of cricket and creating chances of their own.

They are not waiting for any weakness from the opposition but striking a few meaty blows of their own. The fans who had always been behind their team in the hope that they could nick a result in their favour against the ‘favourites’ and pull off an unlikely ‘upset’ are now backing a team with the belief that this team can defy all odds and maybe even conquer everything there is to be conquered.

And if talents like Soumya Sarkar, Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman are guided ably by the relatively experienced Mashrafe Mortaza, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal, then there could be a whole new way we could look at this Bangladeshi unit in the coming years when the 2019 ICC World Cup in England beckons.

A kitten who began purring in 1999 has transformed into a tiger letting out a huge roar that is not falling on deaf ears anymore. They are licking their paws and sharpening their claws waiting for their next prey. And while their claws are still sharp they would like to strike hard and true deep into the flesh of their victims.

There is no looking back for this exhilarating squad as the dream run has surely begun. Whether that run is consolidated to turn this team into a major force in cricket for the long run is yet to be seen. But exciting things lay in store for Bangladesh Cricket and its passionate supporters.