Cricket in Bangladesh: history and modern days

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Today cricket is one of the most popular sports in Bangladesh. The country has a strong domestic league in which players not only from Bangladesh but also from India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and even England participate. Moreover, from 2000, Bangladesh became a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and this allowed the national team to play the game’s highest standard – Test cricket. 

Thousands of cricket fans today keep a close eye on the changes in the world of cricket on popular sports sites, such as Sportsadda com, that publish the latest news and scores. Below we will describe the history of cricket in Bangladesh, as well as the modern changes in this sport and its perspectives.

Appearance and development of cricket in Bangladesh

Initially, cricket appeared in Bangladesh more than two centuries ago, when this territory was under British rule. The first mentions of this game relate to the 1780s, where English expatriates organized a cricket club in Calcutta. From that time, there are numerous mentions of cricket clubs and tournaments on the territory of modern Bangladesh, however, its growth was relatively slow.

After the appearance of East Pakistan, in the 1950s-1960s, there were both first-class and Test cricket tournaments, but after its independence, Bangladesh lost its status as a first-class cricket country and needed to start everything as an Associate Member of the ICC. Therefore, the modern history of cricket in Bangladesh starts in 1971 with the independence of the country. Marylebone Cricket Club played against Bangladesh national team in Rajshahi, and it was the first match for the national team. Later, Bangladesh national team also played against Sri Lanka and teams from other countries. 

This game became extremely popular, and in 1977, Bangladesh became an affiliate member of ICC. From that time, cricket teams regularly participated in numerous domestic in international sports events, and in 1999, Bangladesh qualified for the World Cup in England, which was an impressive achievement for sportsmen from Bangladesh. After winning an ICC Trophy in 1977 and good results in the Cricket World Cup in 1999, the National Cricket League (NCL) of Bangladesh was created.

The first participation in the World Cup in 1999 was a real success for Bangladesh, especially when its sportsmen played better than the cricket team from Pakistan. Later, in 2007 it gained victories over South Africa and India. Also, it is worth mentioning that it beat West Indies and reached the Super Eights. In 2017, the Bangladesh cricket team participated in the finals of the Asia Cup tournaments and became a semifinalist in the ICC Champions Trophy. 

First-class cricket tournaments

Bangladesh started to conduct first-class domestic cricket tournaments in 2000-2001 years. The Green Delta National Cricket League (NCL) was created to be the first-class championship in Bangladesh and the Ispahani Mirzapore Tea One-Day League was created as a premier limited-overs competition. After their creation, in 2000-2001 eight teams played twelve matches in domestic tournaments. In particular, there were teams in Group A, such as Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Dhaka Division, Rajshahi Division, and Chittagong Division. In Group B there were Dhaka Metropolis, Barisal Division, Sylhet Division, and Khulna Division. Four of these teams entered the final stage of the national cricket tournament. 

Modern days and the future of cricket in Bangladesh

The Bangladesh national cricket team is named “The Tigers”, like a Royal Bengal Tiger, and the whole world knows the names of cricket players from Bangladesh, such as Tamim Iqba, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, and many others. Also, today Bangladesh cricket has many young talents that already have impressive results. In addition, thousands of cricket fans support their favorite teams in the stadiums and online, and currently, there are many online cricket platforms, where everyone can see the results of the latest matches and even make a bet. 

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