Ashfaq-Ul-Alam

Shakib Al Hasan, a name that has been synonymous with the Bangladesh cricket team in all three formats for almost 18 years, called time on his T20I career yesterday at a press conference in Kanpur ahead of today’s second and final Test against hosts India, pulling down the curtain on an illustrious international career in the shortest format.

Claiming that the second day of the Chennai Test between Bangladesh and India yesterday was almost evenly matched may seem absurd, but this notion is not totally out of place, at least in one department.

India are unbeaten in home Test series since 2013, having won 17 straight Test series at home -- a world record -- drawing seven Tests, losing four and winning a staggering 40 home Tests in this period.

The recent Pakistan series could prove to be the juncture that cricket historians later point to as the moment when Miraz eclipsed Shakib in the race, at least in the red-ball format.

On Sunday at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, the Najmul Hossain Shanto-led Bangladesh side presented one such spectacle when they defeated Pakistan in a Test match for the very first time.

Mushfiqur yesterday reached another such mountaintop in the first of two Tests against hosts Pakistan, becoming the first Bangladesh player to score a Test century in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and Sri Lanka -- hence conquering the Asian summit.

The sight of South African cricketers lying on the ground, distraught, with their eyelids struggling to hold back tears after they failed to cross the final hurdle before the final once again, had become an enduring image of Protea cricket.

The stage was set for another classic South African choke in an ICC event when they took on West Indies in a virtual knockout fixture in the Super Eight stage of the ICC T20 World Cup yesterday in Antigua.

Bangladesh were the inferior side on display throughout the match and unsurprisingly suffered a 50-run drubbing.

Considering Shakib’s age, 37, his decline in bowling shouldn’t be that much of a surprise. But as the all-rounder has expressed his desire to feature for Bangladesh in the next T20 World Cup as well, this dip is a worrying sign.

The end of the first round and the commencement of the Super Eight phase has seemingly brought an end to bowlers’ domination in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup, posing a fresh challenge for the teams that are vying for a spot in the semifinals.

At one end, there is captain Shanto, a smart leader who has been brave with his use of bowlers, excellent with his on-field decisions, has taken a number of gutsy calls, and almost all of his gambles have come off.

Before Bangladesh fans got their hearts shattered to a million pieces with an agonising four-run defeat to South Africa, they were treated with the sight of their pace trio making the opposition batters dance to their tunes on an unpredictable pitch at the Nassau Country Cricket Stadium in New York yesterday.

Bangladesh’s win over Sri Lanka may not have been entirely convincing but it has already put the Tigers in a favourable position in the race to Super 8s.

It took 28 years, but Frank Nsubaga has finally made it to the big stage.

Even though cricket is a global game which in terms of popularity is only behind football in the world, the people running the sport have always been sceptical about letting new teams join the ranks of the established names.

Najmul Hossain Shanto, the current Bangladesh captain in all three formats, is feeling that pressure right now. His struggles with the bat in T20Is are as clear as daylight. In his last 10 outings in the format, Shanto has scored just 189 runs at a strike rate of a little over 102.

A show of ‘Power’ had been missing in ‘Powerplays’ for Bangladesh in the past editions of the T20 World Cups, as batters have more often than not failed to make use of the field restrictions in the first six overs -- a handicap that has hindered the team’s fortunes in the competition.

Why the starkly different reactions to the same occurrence, you may ask. And the answer is painfully obvious, hidden in plain sight but remains unspoken.

Bangladesh are set to host Zimbabwe next month for what seems like the umpteenth time, a series that from the host team’s point of view is an opportunity to work out some kinks before the all-important ICC Twenty World Cup in June.