Story Bangladesh Begin Blissful Age [India In Bangladesh]

[Funknath]

Nice pres there Jaz and Islam deserves MoM. Nice update mate KUTGW!

 

[Jaztheman]

Cheers, Funky. I'm away till Saturday 3rd so there won't be any updates from now until then, unfortunately. When I get back there should be constant updates like there have been recently.

 

[matty_boy08]

Good story mate,
KUTGW

 

[Pakistani Army]

Bangladesh really have impressed me in this match. Chasing 320 with a "Weak" batting line up is absoloutly stunning.

Great detail Jaz.

 

[Jaztheman]

Back now so I should be back to normal with frequent updates starting tomorow. Hope you all had a good New Year.

 

[formula1man]

This is a good story mate keep it up

 

[Jaztheman]

Bangladesh Announce Team For Second Test

The Bangladeshi board has both named their 12 players selected for the second Test Match, which is to be started on Sunday 16th April. The tour between Australia and Bangladesh is the first tour for Sir Ian Botham and albeit a hard one, they have started fantastically. The team has only a one new player as many have kept their places thanks to an emphatic victory against World Champions Australia. The Bangladesh's 12 players for the second Test are:

Shahriar Nafees
Javed Omar
Habibul Bashar(*)
Naeem Islam
Rajin Saleh
Mohammad Ashraful
Mushfiqur Rahim(+)
Manjural Islam
Mohammad Rafique
Hassibul Hossain
Alamgir Kabir
Arafat Sunny

The Bangladesh team see's only one change. Mohammad Ashraful, who has played 32 Test Matches at the tender age of 21 years old, comes into the side after being left out for the first match. He averages 24.60 in Tests but is young and has a little bit of experience on his side. He is one of the best batsmen for Bangladesh despite being left out in the first Test. He came in for Arafat Salahuddin, who didn't get a chance to perform although will no doubt have his chance in the One Day Internationals.

Bar Ashraful being added to the batting team, the batting team see's no further changes. Every pure batsman that batted in the first Test Match averages at least 25, which against Australia is fantastic. Nafees is the only exception to this rule at the moment and will need to perform in the second Test Match to have a chance of being selected for the One Day Internationals. Rahim is the wicket keeper once again and although his place is virtually secured, he still has to perform above his lowly 16.00 average. Habibul Bashar and Naeem Islam, who both performed incredibly well, both keep their positions in the second Test. Naeem Islam averages 261 after playing one Test against Australia.

The bowling has seen no changes apart from that of Salahuddin being removed from the squad, which means the bowling attack from the first match, will be the same in the second match. Arafat Sunny saved the team in the first Test with 8 remarkable wickets but was helped by the other bowlers greatly. Rafique didn't bat well nor bowl well in the last match and if he doesn't perform again, then his position could be in jeopardy for this tour. The option of having 2 spinners is there if Sir Ian Botham decides to bring in another seamer as at the moment they are playing with 3 spinners and 2 seamers, which is rather risky. They can't be expected to do as well in the next match though as the Australian batsmen now know how they play and will no doubt play against the Bangladesh weakness's.​

 

[Zohaib]

nice update

 

[Funknath]

Nice Bangla squad. Ashraful will give some strength to the team IMO. BTW Jaz nice update!

 

[formula1man]

looks like a pretty good squad

 

[Jaztheman]

Second Test Preview

Bangladesh are one up in the series after a shocking victory in the first Test Series, which means they can not lose the Test Series, but a draw or a win for the lowly placed club would get them their best ever Series win. It's not an easy task against the best side in the world who are expected to fight back but at least they will draw the Series. It will certainly be an interesting second game of the year.

The Bangladesh team for the Second Test:

1. Javed Omar
2. Rajin Saleh
3. Habibul Bashar(*)
4. Naeem Islam
5. Mohammad Ashraful
6. Manjural Islam
7. Mushfiqur Rahim(+)
8. Arafat Sunny
9. Mohammad Rafique
10.Hasibul Hossain
11. Alamgir Kabir

The top order is the only place in the team to have a change. Nafees has been replaced by Ashraful, who goes into the middle order, with Rajin Saleh being promoted from 5 to 2. Javed Omar, after getting 41 and 9 in the First Test, is promoted to the number 1 spot with Nafees getting dropped. Omar played a big part in the first match and will be hoping to get his first half century of the season. Rajin Saleh made 16 and 20* in the most recent match against Australia and was rather impressive, but will have a big thing to prove in this match. The 22 year old, who isn't an opener by trade, will have to open the innings against an awesome bowling attack, which is not easy by any means. Habibul Bashar got his 25th half century in the last match and got his 4th century for Bangladesh. He keeps his position at 3 in the team after 89 and 119 in the first match as he captained Bangladesh to a fantastic win. The 33 year old is being thought of by many as one of the best ever Bangladesh cricketers.

The middle order sees Mohammad Ashraful make his first appearance of the season. Naeem Islam keeps his position at 4 though ahead of Ashraful, after an amazing Test Debut. He scored centuries in both his innings and made 3 catches. He did what was asked of him and so much more. Whether the 19 year old will be able to keep up his fantastic start, I don't know, but I'm sure he will be one of the big performers for Bangladesh. Mohammad Ashraful, Manjural Islam and Mushfiqur Rahim make up the rest of the middle order. Islam and Rahim weren't too good with the bat in the first match but Mohammad Ashraful comes in for his season debut. The 21 year old has already represented Bangladesh 98 times in his career and averages 24.50, which is a little disappointing. He is a better player than his statistics suggest.

The bowlers are looking good after the first match. 3 of the 4 main bowlers average under 30, which is a remarkable feat. Arafat Sunny was the best bowler, averaging 23.50 from his 8 wickets although he was helped emphatically by Kabir and Islam. The Bangladesh attack is very much reliant on spin but can handle itself in the pace department as well. Saying that, a spin pitch would be much more preferable than a seam pitch. The bowlers will have to perform above expectations once again if they want to get another fantastic result.

After their triumphant victory against Australia in the first Test match, the spirit is even higher than it was when Sir Ian Botham took over. He has already worked wonders with the team and is looking like a star coach. He has them playing for each other and if the players can perform as a team once again then they have a chance of getting something out of the match. Australia will no doubt perform better in this match though, so their chances of a draw/win are slim. Rafique is the player who is under most pressure, after having a poor first match. They will definitely give their all.

1. Michael Hussey
2. Matthew Hayden
3. Ricky Ponting(*)
4. Philip Jaques
5. Justin Langer
6. Adam Gilchrist(+)
7. Shane Watson
8. Brett Lee
9. Shane Warne
10. Jason Gillespie
11. Glenn McGrath

The only change in the top order, is that Hayden and Hussey have swapped positions. Hussey had a good first test match, averaging 90, whilst Hayden was not as successful. The coach of Australia has been quoted as saying that he is wanting this partnership to work, as it is one of the best he can work with. Ricky Ponting averaged 41 in the First Test and being captain, keeps his place rather easily. The Australian Captain was distraught with the most recent match's result and will be looking to make the series 1-1.

The middle order is unchanged from Australia, with number 4 and number 5 being indispensable in the last match. Phil Jaques was fantastic in the First Test and only just missed out on his century in the second innings thanks to being not out, but he had a very good match. If the opening partnership of Hussey and Hayden, then Jaques can easily play there. Just Langer also had a good match, scoring 44 and 45 respectively. He missed out on his half century by a mere few runs but will be looking to improve on those scores in this game. His luck needs to change. Gilchrist and Watson were both poor with the bat both times in the last Test match and if they don't buckle up in this match, then I can see at least Watson getting dropped. Gilchrist's performance as wicketkeeper in the first match, no doubt kept his place in the starting eleven.

The bowling lineup for Australia welcomes the spin legend back into the team. Shane Warne has recovered from his cold and is back into the team in the Second Test Match, in place of Stuart Clark. McGrath was the only real bowler to shine in the first match, with Watson helping very little. The openers Lee and Gillespie were both appalling and averaged over 100 each for the match. Shane Warne however is arguably the best spin bowler ever seen and will no doubt assist the seamers in doing better. The attack of Lee, McGrath and Warne will no doubt be incredibly difficult for the Bangladeshi's to cope with. Having Gillespie and Watson as your other bowlers isn't too shabby either.

The Australian team is looking stronger in this match, as it seems that Australia are taking Bangladesh more seriously. After their surprise hiccup in the last match, veteran spinner Shane Warne has been called back in and is expected to carry the Australian team to a 1-1 draw in the series. The team is looking even better than the one that played in the first match, even though there have been little changes. Although I bet on Australia in the first match and lost, I would definitely bet on them again in this one. They should simply overpower Bangladesh.

Pitch

As long as the pitch can spin or seam then Bangladesh have a chance of a series win, a bowling pitch increases the odds fantastically. Thankfully for them, there should be some seam, swing and spin in the pitch. The forecast for the match is more predictable than the first test and if you are actually reading this then make a joke about a meteor blowing up in George Bush's swimming pool. The weather will be mainly sun but will turn to overcast and a chance of rain over Day Two and Day Three. The bounce is average which assist the pace bowlers no doubt. The wear is also good which encourages the spinners. The outfield is average which means we will be seeing more boundaries than in the last match. The light is very good so we should not see any captains being offered bad light.

Toss

Ricky Ponting and Habibul Bashar have both already been out on the pitch and have had a long look at the pitch. They've also already done the toss, which was won by Australia. Ricky Captain decided to put Australia into bat, the same as they were chosen to do in the first match. Will Australia get a Series draw or will Sir Ian Botham guide Bangladesh to a famous Series win? Stay tuned to find out.​

 

[shantanu_rooney]

Australia batting first looks interesting. Hoping that new comer Sunny who was great in the 1st test does the same thing again. Brilliant written Jaz. KUTGW

edit: Second Test preview(instead of first)

 

[gutterman]

a very nice update mate. i expect australia to come back at you hard after their first test loss. kutgw

 

[formula1man]

nice update. Australia will win hopefully.

 

[Funknath]

Nice update mate. Hope Bangla win this one also!!