Bangladesh’s maiden one-day series victory over Australia ought to have sparked a proper knees-up, Soumya Sarkar reckons. Instead, beyond the traditional team song behind a closed dressing-room door, celebrations were almost non-existent. “This series win is such a big achievement, for which I think there should have been a much bigger celebration,” Soumya said. “I don’t know how much we have done but it should have been better. If we can make it 3-0, it will certainly be huge, but even winning the series should have been celebrated better. We are focused on making it 3-0 by playing positive cricket in all three departments.”
Key facts first. Bangladesh beat Australia by 86 runs in the opening ODI, then wrapped up the series two days later with a five-wicket success, chasing 192 with nine overs to spare. The third match is on Sunday; it is now a shot at a sweep rather than a dead rubber.
Soumya’s own role in Thursday’s chase was tidy and, when required, aggressive. He walked in after Tanzid Hasan nicked off first ball, counter-attacked for 42 from 47 and shared 86 with captain-in-waiting Najmul Hossain Shanto. The thinking, he explained, was simple enough.
“When Tanzid got out, we kept in mind that a big team will always try to get on top of you if you are bogged down. They were trying hard to get wickets, so Shanto and I decided to play normal attacking cricket. We didn’t want to be dominated at that instance.
“If we thought that the target wasn’t huge and we could take our time, we would have handed them the advantage. They used their main bowlers for four- or five-over spells. They were hunting for wickets. Shanto and I planned not to give wickets to their main bowlers, but always be on the lookout for boundaries. We just planned to pick up runs by staying positive.”
That approach worked until the 16th over, when Soumya’s reverse sweep off part-timer Matt Renshaw ballooned to Xavier Bartlett at slip. Some thought it an avoidable dismissal with only eight needed for a half-century. He disagrees. “If I reached my half-century, my shot wouldn’t come into the discussion. But I thought the shot was on; I had success playing it in the past. I wasn’t successful this time. I would play the shot whenever I feel it is necessary.”
Nahid Rana, the bustling right-armer, deserved a mention too. He hurried Australia’s middle order on a surface that offered just enough nip, collecting three for 34 and causing a fair bit of discomfort. Soumya sees a broader trend. “I think we have one of the best pace attacks in the world currently. I think the opposition will think about our pace attack if they put out a fast bouncy wicket against us. The pace bowlers are giving us a very good time. Spin used to help our winning ratio in the past; now it’s the fast bowlers playing match-winning roles.
“We should really take care of these fast bowlers so that they can play for Bangladesh for a long time. They should become role models for the next batch of fast bowlers in the country. We want a healthy competition in every department, so that we can take advantage of their momentum.”
Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman have been doing the heavy lifting for a while, yet the emergence of Rana, Mrittunjoy Chowdhury and Co means Ebadot Hossain is barely discussed right now. It is a different landscape from even two years ago, when results relied heavily on Shakib Al Hasan’s left-arm spin and the canny Mehidy Hasan Miraz.
Why the muted reaction, then? Senior staff say the dressing room has grown used to bigger occasions: the side played a World Cup quarter-final in 2015, toured England in front of packed crowds last year and now beat Australia twice inside 72 hours. Still, supporters wandering out of Sher-e-Bangla on Thursday did so almost politely; no impromptu parades, no wild horns on Mirpur Road.
The players, Soumya included, would not mind something a touch livelier – preferably after a clean sweep on Sunday. Bangladesh have never white-washed Australia in any format. They might not get a better chance, and if it happens it will be a moment worth savouring properly, noisy or otherwise.
