5 Bangladesh Cricket facts that sound fake but are actually true

Bangladesh cricket, over the last two decades, has been a mixture of greatness and controversy. Ever since they started taking baby steps amongst the big boys of the sport, they have managed to capture the imaginations of the fans and the cricket fraternity. In the last 20 years, they have furrowed eyebrows after beating quite a few big teams with a sheer amount of dominance and audacity. The likes of Tamim Iqbal, Mustafizur Rahman, and Shakib Al Hasan have made hay with some stupendous brand of cricket. But over the years, their cricket has also been a witness to some surprising moments. Even as some of them are worth rejoicing, a handful of them has tarnished their image to some extent. Nevertheless, they have kept producing talents, who have taken the sport forward. In the article, let’s take a look at 5 Bangladesh cricket facts that are surprisingly true: 1. Mohammad Ashraful once dismissed AB de Villiers Mohammad Ashraful and AB de Villiers. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Mohammad Ashraful, during his heydays, was known for his fearless brand of cricket. Though he averaged in the 20s for a chunk of his career for Bangladesh, he was the face of their cricket owing to his style of play. He also had 47 wickets for the Tigers from 261 matches. One of those scalps was of former South African batsman AB de Villiers back in 2008 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. The dismissal was a rather bizarre one, to say the least. In the Proteas’ first innings of the opening Test in Dhaka, de Villiers notched 46 runs off 73 balls with seven fours and one six. In the first ball of his only over, Ashraful bowled a half-tracker and the ball bounced twice before de Villiers went for a pull. The batsman miscued the shot and Ashraful took a simple catch of his own bowling to send the batsman packing. 2. Nazmul Islam introduced the ‘snake dance’, not Mushfiqur Rahim Nazmul Islam. (Photo Source: Getty Images) In the 2018 Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, Mushfiqur Rahim went overboard and did an impromptu ‘snake dance’. It attracted a lot of criticism from the cricket fraternity. The entire Bangladesh team was also seen resorting to the unique celebration. However, though Rahim popularised it, he didn’t introduce it by any means. It was left-arm spinner Nazmul Islam Apu, who brought forth the celebration. Back in 2017, Nazmul said that during an edition of the Bangladesh Premier League, he tried to do the ‘snake dance’ after which Daren Sammy pretended to be afraid. Even in international cricket, Apu has performed the dance quite a few times. The celebration has marred the reputation of Bangladesh cricket and it remains as a blot in their glorious rise in cricket over the last two decades. 3. Mashrafe Mortaza once hit an Indian bowler for four sixes in a row in an ODI Mashrafe Mortaza. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Mashrafe Mortaza, without a doubt, remains a legend in Bangladesh cricket, mostly due to his stupendous captaincy prowess. With 390 wickets for the Tigers, he has carried the team on his shoulders for a long time. However, the Narail Express was no mug with the bat in hand. Having hit 107 sixes in his career, the veteran has shown that he can bring out the long handle for his team in the hour of need. Back in 2007, in an ODI against India in Dhaka, he went bonkers and scored 42 runs off 22 balls at a strike rate of 190.90. Albeit the Tigers lost by 46 runs, Mashrafe hogged the limelight. In the 47th over of Bangladesh’s run-chase, he hit left-arm spinner Dinesh Mongia for four sixes in a row. He peppered the boundary downtown before he fell prey to Yuvraj Singh in the very next over of the innings. 4. Bangladesh once beat finalist Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup BAN vs PAK World Cup 1999. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Back in 1999, Bangladesh had the privilege of playing their maiden World Cup. Though they couldn’t make a lot of progress, it was their 62-run win over Pakistan that brought a lot of joy to their nation. At the County Ground in Northampton, after being put in to bat first, Bangladesh managed an under-par 223 for nine with a top score of 42 from Akram Khan coupled with a 39 from Shahriar Hossain. While defending the modest total, Khaled Mahmud Sujon wreaked havoc in the opposition batting lineup as he picked up three wickets. He also went on to become the Player of the Match. For Pakistan, Azhar Mahmood, skipper Wasim Akram, and Saqlain Mushtaq got into the 20s, but their efforts went in vain. For the Tigers, it was a moment of joy and jubilant as they beat the eventual finalists of the mega event. 5. Mushfiqur Rahim has a higher Test average against India than Kane Williamson Mushfiqur Rahim and Kane Williamson. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Mushfiqur Rahim averages 37.18 in his 74-match Test career thus far, but against India, his numbers are impressive. In seven games, he has scored 518 runs at an average of 51.80. The Bogra-born has notched two centuries and as many half-centuries to show for his efforts. His top score of 127 came in 2017 in Hyderabad. Back in 2019, he also got scores of 64 and 74 in Indore and Kolkata respectively. Interestingly, his average against India is higher than that of Kane Williamson, the ICC’s number one ranked Test batter. The Tauranga-born Kane has an average of 36.40 against Virat Kohli and Co. In fact, it’s his lowest against any opposition in Test cricket. Kane has scored two centuries and four fifties versus the Indian team and he would be looking to improve on his numbers going forward.

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5 Bangladesh Cricket facts that sound fake but are actually true

Even as some moments are worth rejoicing, a handful of them has tarnished their image to some extent.

5. Mushfiqur Rahim has a higher Test average against India than Kane Williamson

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