Women’s cricket team shows promise

Bangladesh stun India in Asia Cup T20 final

Bangladesh’s women’s cricket team was at the centre of discussions for their fluctuating fortunes in 2018, with an even win-loss percentage of 50-50.

Through the year, they played 24 international matches, the highest in a calendar year in their international career. The Bangladesh girls played all the matches under three bilateral series and three multi-nation tournaments.

They launched the year with their South Africa tour, which they undertook after a year’s gap in their international schedule. But their performance in South Africa disappointed everyone, as they returned home empty-handed.

Even though they were not able to win a single match in this tour, there were some signs of progress in their Twenty20 games. But there was also a subtle change in their attitude in the tour.

There was a fine display of grit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in June, during their ACC Women’s Twenty20 Asia Cup, where they showed their dexterity in three departments—batting, bowling and fielding.

The Tigresses stormed into the final without losing any match. Then, they lifted the coveted Asia Cup trophy by winning a nerve-jangling final. En route to lifting the title, they had to beat not only Pakistan but also top-notch India, which was not easy at all.

What the women’s team achieved in Malaysia their male counterparts are yet to do, though they were very close on two occasions in 2014 on home soil and in 2018 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The first-ever feat they achieved created a huge furore, not only in the country but also in the entire cricketing world.

Inspired by their spellbinding success, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced financial rewards for the victorious Tigresses. Along with that, the BCB chalked out some effective measures that they believe would bring about wholesale changes in women’s cricket in the country.

The board has already increased the number of women players in their national payroll from 14 to 17. Apart from that, they reshuffled the players’ grade with an increased amount of money, where the maximum grade will be fixed at Tk. 50,000 and the minimum at Tk. 15,000.

The board has also declared that they would soon form a Bangladesh ‘A’ team for women’s cricket like the men’s ‘A’ Team and induct school cricket for further development of women’s cricket.

The Tigresses also toured Ireland after a seven-day gap to play a pre-World T20 Qualifier series and triumphed in the Twenty20 series 2-1 against the hosts Ireland.

Since then, they travelled to the Netherlands and successfully replicated their Asia Cup performance in the ICC Women’s World T20 Qualifier, from where they ensured their passport to the main extravaganza of the ICC Women’s World Twenty20–West Indies 2018.

But they failed to carry on their summer successes in their next two assignments. They played a short series against Pakistan arranged by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for the Tigresses’ World T20 preparation on home turf. Even though they won a lone ODI match, they lost the T20 series 3-0.

It was in the last week of October that Bangladesh women’s team went to the West Indies to play for ICC Women’s World T20 in November, where they disappointed all with their performance because they failed to win a single match.

Though they bowled well, their batting and fielding were shocking. Their highest total was 79 for 5 in the mega event against South Africa.

Nazmul Abedin Faheem, team operating manager (TOM) of the Bangladesh women’s cricket team, said 2018 would have been better for them had they won at least a match in World T20.

But it was a big thing, he said, that they came out of their shell irrespective of how the year began and ended. Now a lot of hope is being pinned on the team.

Womens cricket team shows promise

Bangladesh stun India in Asia Cup T20 final

Bangladeshs womens cricket team was at the centre of discussions for their fluctuating fortunes in 2018, with an even win-loss percentage of 50-50. Through the year, they played 24 international matches, the highest in a calendar year in their international career. The Bangladesh girls played all the matches under three bilateral series and three multi-nation tournaments. They launched the year with their South Africa tour, which they undertook after a years gap in their international schedule. But their performance in South Africa disappointed everyone, as they returned home empty-handed. Even though they were not able to win a single match in this tour, there were some signs of progress in their Twenty20 games. But there was also a subtle change in their attitude in the tour. There was a fine display of grit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in June, during their ACC Womens Twenty20 Asia Cup, where they showed their dexterity in three departmentsbatting, bowling and fielding. The Tigresses stormed into the final without losing any match. Then, they lifted the coveted Asia Cup trophy by winning a nerve-jangling final. En route to lifting the title, they had to beat not only Pakistan but also top-notch India, which was not easy at all. What the womens team achieved in Malaysia their male counterparts are yet to do, though they were very close on two occasions in 2014 on home soil and in 2018 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first-ever feat they achieved created a huge furore, not only in the country but also in the entire cricketing world. Inspired by their spellbinding success, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced financial rewards for the victorious Tigresses. Along with that, the BCB chalked out some effective measures that they believe would bring about wholesale changes in womens cricket in the country. The board has already increased the number of women players in their national payroll from 14 to 17. Apart from that, they reshuffled the players grade with an increased amount of money, where the maximum grade will be fixed at Tk. 50,000 and the minimum at Tk. 15,000. The board has also declared that they would soon form a Bangladesh A team for womens cricket like the mens A Team and induct school cricket for further development of womens cricket. The Tigresses also toured Ireland after a seven-day gap to play a pre-World T20 Qualifier series and triumphed in the Twenty20 series 2-1 against the hosts Ireland. Since then, they travelled to the Netherlands and successfully replicated their Asia Cup performance in the ICC Womens World T20 Qualifier, from where they ensured their passport to the main extravaganza of the ICC Womens World Twenty20West Indies 2018. But they failed to carry on their summer successes in their next two assignments. They played a short series against Pakistan arranged by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for the Tigresses World T20 preparation on home turf. Even though they won a lone ODI match, they lost the T20 series 3-0. It was in the last week of October that Bangladesh womens team went to the West Indies to play for ICC Womens World T20 in November, where they disappointed all with their performance because they failed to win a single match. Though they bowled well, their batting and fielding were shocking. Their highest total was 79 for 5 in the mega event against South Africa. Nazmul Abedin Faheem, team operating manager (TOM) of the Bangladesh womens cricket team, said 2018 would have been better for them had they won at least a match in World T20. But it was a big thing, he said, that they came out of their shell irrespective of how the year began and ended. Now a lot of hope is being pinned on the team.