The moment young debutant Mehedi Miraj pushed the ball to take Bangladesh to a historic Test victory against the much fancied Sri Lankans, the winning roar of the Tigers reverberated back home, thousand kilometres away from the venue in Colombo on the shore of the Indian Ocean. All eyes were riveted on TV screens, in homes, in student dormitories of Dhaka University and at street corners as Bangladesh inched towards a win in their 100th Test match. And then cheers of victory erupted that drowned the din and bustle of the city in the afternoon rush hour of the first day of the week. While motorists listening to their car radios honked their horns loudly in cheer, social media platforms were clogged with vivacious expressions of joy.
An auto-rickshaw driver in a lengthy beard and wrapped in a Mufti, jumped from his seat holding aloft his cell phone tuned to the radio commentary relaying live from Colombo. “We have won. We have won,” he told his puzzled passengers.
“We would have won much earlier if some of the boys had not thrown away their wickets,” he added.
Like him, rickshaw pullers too stopped midway hearing the pedestrians shouting in joy: “Bravo Tigers go ahead and maul your opponents”.
People working in offices, factories and even in the newsrooms of TV channels, radios and newspapers jumped from their seats, thumping their desks to express their joy. Sweetmeats were distributed among the staff by the management of The Independent TV and newspaper as a token of celebration.
Boys and girls burst into cheers at the TSC corners of Dhaka University, with some holding the Bangladesh flag high in front of the Raju sculpture, Aporajeo Bangla sculpture, the great piece of expression of freedom for an indomitable Bangladesh, symbolising the extent of joy which electrified the nation on a hot humid afternoon.
Sweetmeat shops witnessed a mad rush of customers to buy and distribute sweets to celebrate the great victory that neither India nor Pakistan could achieve in their 100th Test matches. But the indomitable Tigers achieved the feat in a Colombo ground by humbling the Sri Lankan team by 4 wickets, something the national TV and Radio brought in live, sparking instant celebrations everywhere.
“Great job, team Bangladesh. Tigers finally clip Lions wagging tails,” were some of the celebratory comments on social media, summing up the historic win.