The Bangladesh national cricket team has made quite a name for itself. Often regarded as the underdogs, the team has shown the world time and time again that they are capable of fighting against the very best. They also have been playing in the international level for a fair amount of time and have resided in the hearts of 16 million Bengalis by making them proud, thus earning their title as the “TIGERS”.
But this shouldn’t be the case with the men’s team only when the women’s team have stepped up their game and are ready to show the world that they too are capable of playing at the top-level. Thus, it is high time we should start getting behind and support our very own “TIGRESSES”.
The Bangladesh women’s national cricket team made their international debut against Thailand in July 2007. They went on to participate and emerge victorious in the 2007 ICC Women’s Tournament. The women’s team were granted One-day International status in 2011 as they finished fifth in the qualifying campaign of the 2011 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup. Their participation in the 2014 Twenty20 World Cup was their first appearance at the top-level. Even though they failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup in both 2011 and 2017, they did make it to the T20 World Cup in both 2014 and 2016 but failed to make it past the first round in both the occasions. While the men’s team were struggling to find their feet as 2018 began, the women’s team gave the country a glimmer of hope and something to cheer about as they were triumphant in the 2018 Women’s Asia Cup after beating 6 time winners India in the final by three wickets. The women’s team have proved that they are a team to be reckoned with as they showed how strong they are in the continent, achieving silver medals in both 2010 and 2014 Asian Games. The Bangladesh women’s national team are currently placed ninth in the ICC Women’s Rankings.
There is still a long way to go and the women’s national team have only started showing signs of improvement .The Bangladesh women’s national team legend Rumana Ahmed is the highest capped player and has the most runs to her name. Salma Khatun, the current captain of the women’s team has scored the highest number of runs in terrific match against India in April 2013.
Our Tigers have seen us chanting prayers, color ourselves in red and green, screaming our lungs out for them every time they score a six or catch a ball. We’ve shed enough to drown a city. Now it’s time to do the same for our well deserved Tigresses. With our constant support and facilities provided by the BCB, the Tigresses are destined for greatness.
Article By: Rafiul Azam, IX