Sakeb Subhan

That Bangladesh won the opening match of the Asia Cup against Sri Lanka yesterday by a crushing 137-run margin at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium does not even begin to tell the story. Mushfiqur Rahim scoring a career-best 144 off 150 balls to lift Bangladesh to 261 after Bangladesh were reduced to one run for two wickets by the end of the first over by danger man Lasith Malinga reveals a bit more, but still not the full picture.

Having made the finals in two of the last three editions of the Asia Cup, Bangladesh must now be considered as one of the serious contenders for the title of the regional cricket extravaganza starting today at the Dubai International Stadium. Their place in their group -- ranked above both groupmates Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, who they take on today -- justifies that billing.

When Bangladesh take on Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup opener in Dubai today, they will deal with the familiar and the unfamiliar in a quest to progress to the second round of a tournament that has been structured in a brand new format.

There is a special place for the Asia Cup in Bangladeshi hearts because growing up in the 1990s and 2000s, it was the tournament that served as the backdrop for the India-Pakistan rivalry, set the stage for the emergence of Sri Lanka and, more relevantly, provided a venue for Bangladesh to start rubbing shoulders with the big boys on a regular basis.

When news filtered through Sunday that young Bangladesh batsman Mosaddek Hossain was being sued by his wife of six years, it was not a big surprise because young players' personal lives becoming more newsworthy than their performances is now a common phenomenon.

The 2005 Ashes series is popularly remembered as Flintoff's Ashes because of the rousing performances of the former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff.

Bangladesh batsman Sabbir Rahman may have landed himself in disciplinary trouble yet again after screenshots emerged of abusive language used and threats issued towards a fan from a Facebook account bearing his name and one he used in conversation with media personnel in the past.

The second ODI against West Indies started in the early hours today, and there is at least a fifty per cent chance that, by the time this reaches the reader, Bangladesh clinched a very creditable series win over West Indies with one match still to be played. On the other hand Bangladesh could have lost and then may go on to lose the third ODI and the series on July 28.

A common theme running through most analyses of Bangladesh's sharp reversal in performance to outplay West Indies in Sunday's first ODI in Guyana has been the change in format from Tests to ODIs, which the Tigers are much more comfortable with.

Talk of golden generations may be quite familiar for sport followers in July of 2018. Belgium's golden generation lost a golden opportunity to win a World Cup in Russia recently. Much closer to home, as the football frenzy fades, cricket fans are faced with what must now be seen as the irreversible decline of Bangladesh cricket's golden generation.

Such was the scale of the debacle of the Bangladesh team's capitulating to 43 all out in the first session of the first Test against West Indies on Wednesday that the World Cup fever took a back seat for a day and cricket dominated headlines for all the wrong reasons.

On the face of it a 3-0 whitewash to the babes of international cricket, Afghanistan, may spell catastrophe for the Bangladesh cricket team, but it was hardly a surprise because a look at the ICC world T20I rankings reveals that Bangladesh are two places below Afghanistan.

It may seem repetitive to keep uttering the name Mashrafe Bin Mortaza when talking of this year's Dhaka Premier League, but there

When Mahmudullah Riyad, in his inimitable manner, flicked Thisara Perera for a massive six over square leg he not only won the

It was not really a novel development when Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hassan said on Monday that 'I will be there in Sri Lanka to look after everything, and I will be with them [the team] at all times'.

Among the grievances that the public and players may have against former national coach Chandika Hathurusingha, the Sri Lankan

Soon after the post-match press conferences after Bangladesh's capitulation for 123 brought an early end to the second Test against

Bangladesh letting the momentum slip has been the theme of the year so far. In the ODI tri-series in January the Tigers shot out of the

Not many among Bangladesh's fans, or indeed the media, will have the name Mominul Haque on the tips of their tongues when talking about the country's best batsmen.

A continued focus on Chandika Hathurusingha's presence in the Sri Lanka camp may discomfit those who want to leave his time with