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The St Lucia Test in 2004 beholds one of the brightest parts of Bangladesh Test history as three batsmen scored centuries, and the Tigers managed to draw the match without the blessing of rain.
After achieving Test status in 2000, Bangladesh embarked on their first Caribbean voyage in 2004, and on their very first Test in West Indies, the Tigers managed to score 416 runs in their first innings, their then highest team total.
Habibul Bashar and Mohammad Rafique scored centuries, and Mohammad Ashraful got a half-century in the first innings.
West Indies were all-out for 352 runs in their first innings, giving Bangladesh a much-coveted lead, and in the second innings, Bangladesh declared at 271-9, where Khaled Mashud scored a century.
The first Test of the two-match series ended in a draw, which made the West Indian skipper Brian Lara furious. He told the media that he would quit captaincy if West Indies couldn’t beat Bangladesh in the next Test.
“If we don’t win, then I don’t think I am going to lead the team to England. If we don’t beat Bangladesh in five good days of cricket, we need another leader,” he said in a pre-match news conference before the Kingston Test in 2004.
West Indies won the second Test of the series convincingly, and Lara survived as captain as Bangladesh could not carry the momentum into the next match. Till now, that Test against a full-strength West Indies has been considered the highest level of success for the Tigers in the Caribbeans.
Though Bangladesh won the Test series in 2009 in West Indies, that came against a second-string side as the mainstream cricketers stepped aside due to a payment row.
The second Test of the ongoing series will begin on June 24 at Gros Islet, St Lucia. Can the Tigers bounce back in the cherished venue after receiving a bashing by Kemar Roach and Co at Antigua?
Two former cricketers, who were part of the first-ever West Indies tour, Javed Omar and Rajin Saleh, believe that to do well in the Caribbeans, good technique and preparation are a must.
Rajin, who scored a half-century in St Lucia, told The Business Post that present cricketers cannot handle pace bowling due to the poor standard of the domestic first-class competitions.
“Our batsmen love to play in batting paradise. They don’t want to face the challenge. During a local tournament, I had a heated conversation with a national team player because he was complaining about the pace bowler,” he told The Business Post.
“I think our batsmen are now busy giving excuses. There is a batting coach, analyst, and many support staff around the team, which we did not have in our time. We were a struggling team. But still, we managed to survive because we had that mentality to survive tough conditions,” added the former captain.
Rajin made his Test debut against Pakistan, and played some gritty knocks where he was battered by bouncers from Shoaib Akhter and Shabbir Ahmed.
He also faced a threatening bowling attack consisting of Pedro Collins, Fidel Edwards, Tino Best, and Jermaine Lawson in St Lucia, and played a patient knock of 51 runs from 101 balls, surviving 165 minutes.
Former opener Javed Omar Belim, who was regarded for his ability to occupy the crease, feels that the top-order batsman must set small landmarks to extend their innings.
“Everyone knows their job. All are well experienced in the national team. What I want to say is, that the top-order batsmen must set small landmarks to achieve the bigger target. They need to survive, control their aggression and try to stay long at the crease,” he told The Business Post.
“The openers must set small targets, ball-by-ball to over-by-over, then the entire session. Like they can set a target to bat up to the lunch break, or survive the day. These are open secrets, everyone knows it but they need to execute that,” said Javed, who scored 32 runs in the first innings.
