ACS Overseas First-Class Annual 2018

Bangladesh in 2017/18 In August 2017 Bangladesh capped their most successful period in Test cricket by recording their first-ever Test victory over Australia, and optimism was high – not just among their own supporters – that a corner had finally been turned in their fortunes as a Test-playing nation. One year on, and the picture is very different. Barely a month after that win at home against Australia, it seemed to be back to the old Bangladesh as they suffered two overwhelming defeats in South Africa. Their side seemed ill at ease both with South Africa’s less spinner-friendly pitches; and, seemingly, with themselves, as leading all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan chose to miss the series altogether, while captain Mushfiqur Rahim twice inserted South Africa only for the home batsmen to make merry to the tune of declared first-innings scores of 496-3 and 573-4. Even their spinners were upstaged by their opposition’s counterparts, with South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj taking 8-154 across the two matches while Bangladesh’s three front-line spinners managed 0-509 between them. They might have hoped for more success when they returned home for a two-match series in January against Sri Lanka, but another embarrassing series defeat followed. After a drawn run-fest on a ‘road’ at Chittagong – in which Sri Lanka replied to Bangladesh’s opening 513 with 713-9 declared – Bangladesh were twice bowled out for under 125 at Mirpur to go down by 215 runs. In the friendly conditions at Chittagong Mominul Haque became the first Bangladesh player to make a century in each innings of a Test match, but otherwise it was their spinners who stood out, regaining their touch to take between them 22 of the 29 Sri Lankan wickets to fall in the series. So perhaps it would be in the series in July 2018, away against fellow low-rankers West Indies, that Bangladesh would once again reveal the promise of a year before? After all, Shakib was back, and West Indian pitches these days are much more accommodating to spinners than in the past. But a total of 43 all out in the first innings of the first Test soon put paid to any such hopes – and it might have been worse had Kemar Roach not had to sit out most of the match with a hamstring injury after taking 5-8 in his opening five overs. A total of 144 in the second innings was not, in truth, much better: the score had reached 50-6 before wicket-keeper Nurul Hasan scored a quick 64 at number eight. The defeat, when it inevitably came, was by an innings and 219 runs. Things were not a lot better in the second Test, lost by 166 runs after two more low-scoring Bangladesh innings (in which Nurul Hasan recorded a king pair), though Shakib’s scores of 32 and 54, and second-innings figures of 6-33, reminded them of what they had been missing. Bangladesh’s earlier improvements in Test matches had been highlighted when, in the annual update of the ICC rankings in May 2018, they rose from their customary ninth place, ahead only of Zimbabwe, to overtake West Indies and claim the eighth spot. This was the first time that Bangladesh had ever headed one of the longer-established Test sides in the rankings. But two months later, their failures in the West Indies saw them back in ninth, and further behind than at any time since April 2016. Hopes that they are finally establishing themselves as a fully credible Test-playing nation have, regrettably, to be put on hold for a little longer. Apart from alterations to the points-scoring systems, there were no changes to the domestic first-class structure for 2017/18, with the National Cricket League again featuring eight divisional sides split into two tiers of four teams, and the four-team zonal Bangladesh Cricket League rounding off the season. As before, the teams in each league played the others twice. In the top tier of the National League, Khulna won the only two matches to reach a definite conclusion and ended as comfortable winners, to take the title for the third season in succession. In the Bangladesh Cricket League, North Zone won two and South Zone one of the three decided matches, but it was the South who took the title by virtue of taking a first-innings lead in two of 105