The International Cricket Council (ICC) Friday awarded Test status to the Bangladesh Women's cricket team. Along with the Tigresses, Afghanistan and Zimbabwe women's teams were also awarded the Test status. It was decided in the latest meeting of ICC that Test status would be granted to all women's teams of the full-member nations of the ICC. Also read: Women cricketers join individual training programme Right after the decision was made public, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) women's wing chairman Shafiul Alam Nadel said the Tigress might play their inaugural Test this year. "It's great that the ICC has decided to grant us the Test status," he told the media. "But it'll take some time to schedule our inaugural Test. But we hope to play our first Test this year." Also read: Bangladesh’s women cricketers on a roll Bangladesh all-rounder Rumana Ahmed said, "This is big news for the country. We are now a Test-playing nation in women's cricket. I believe getting the Test status will help Bangladesh women's cricket scale new heights," she said via a video message sent to the media from BCB. With the inclusion of three new teams, the number of women's Test teams has reached 13. The other Test-playing women's teams are – Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, Ireland, Sri Lanka, West Indies and the Netherlands. Read The most famous Bangladeshi female athletes of all time

In case anyone thought, or at least hoped, the new baseball season would go off without a coronavirus-related hitch, there was bad news on opening day: The Washington Nationals’ game against the New York Mets was postponed Thursday after at least three of the 2019 World Series champions’ players tested positive for COVID-19. “We’re still in the midst of a pandemic, and people need to still take this seriously. Unfortunately, it hit us, and we’ve got to take care of our own now,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “All I can say is: Be safe, continue to wear your masks like they ask and know that this still can happen to anyone. It’s tough for us right now, but we’re going to get through it.” Also read:Top Table Tennis players in Bangladesh of All Time General manager Mike Rizzo said Washington also has a fourth player considered a “likely positive.” He did not identify any of the players involved. “For the most part, the whole team has been — we put them — in lockdown and they’re self-quarantining,” Rizzo said. He said it was not yet known when the game will be made up, other than that it would not be played Friday, originally set up as a day off to allow for a makeup contest if there were an issue with Game 1, such as a rainout. Rizzo said one of the players testing positive had a fever, while the others were not displaying COVID-19 symptoms. Contact tracing was continuing to see who else might have been exposed. The teams are supposed to play Saturday and Sunday in Washington. The Mets worked out at Nationals Park on Thursday, with pitchers throwing live to hitters. “To be honest, it wasn’t a surprise. We’ve been in situations like this since last year,” Mets manager Luis Rojas said. “The health is the No. 1 thing still in the world. We’re taking care of ourselves. Everyone’s taking their mask everywhere. We’re doing everything we need to do.” The news rippled across baseball as the 2021 season began. “We have to tend to business and not let up,” Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It’s just a reminder that this thing is still out there and real.” Getting going during this portion of the calendar, and with plans to play a full 162-game slate, is quite a contrast from 2020, when spring training exhibitions were halted in March as the COVID-19 outbreak gripped the world. The sport eventually staged a truncated, 60-game regular season that began in July with zero spectators in stadiums and fake crowd noise coursing through speakers. Now, with vaccines being widely distributed, fans are allowed back in varying numbers — including a full house for the Texas Rangers, which President Joe Biden told ESPN was a mistake — and a sense of normalcy seemed to be returning to the national pastime. “A lot of things are opening up, you know, in the country and things like that. I think we’re all going to feel a lot better once we’ve had the multiple shots and the vaccinations, both rounds of that,” said Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly, who received an injection Thursday. Also read:Athletics to start sports calendar 2020 on January 16 “But for a team, it’s really, really dangerous. ... Your club losing multiple guys at one time, that’s really what can set you back to start your season. It messes with the roster, all kinds of things that you do,” he said. “So it is a little tricky area right now that we’re in, everybody leaving their camps and their bubbles and getting out. More travel. More access to other things.” Rizzo said he was not sure how his team’s outbreak began. His team did not report any positive tests during six weeks of camp in Florida. “I’ve got the utmost confidence that it was not a player breaking protocol,” he said. The team flight from Florida to Washington at the close of spring training on Monday created close contact among players and staff. The Nationals — who finished tied for last in the NL East in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season — were supposed to send Max Scherzer to the mound to face New York’s Jacob deGrom on Thursday in a matchup between pitchers who own a total of five Cy Young Awards. Scherzer said he was not on that team flight and traveled separately with his family. “It’s a shame that we can’t play today, but we need to stay positive. I’ve talked to a lot of players and my concern is about their health and safety,” Washington’s Martinez said. “This isn’t the first time we’ve been through some bumpy roads. We’ve been there and we’re going to come back from this and we’re going to play baseball.”

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Thursday decided to postpone the ongoing Bangabandhu National Cricket League (NCL), taking stock of the Covid-19 situation in the country. Due to the recent surge in Covid-19 infections and fatalities, the BCB had decided to host NCL in only two venues – Cox's Bazar and BKSP. But the Cox's Bazar authority imposed different restrictions including on the use of public transport. So, the board opted to postpone the league after the end of the two rounds. Also read: NCL: Rajshahi pull off record win "It's a precautionary step, and a temporary move," BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury told the media on Thursday. "NCL is a first-class event and eight teams are contesting in this league in more than one venue. So the things are more challenging here." Nizamuddin also said the league would be resumed as soon as possible. He, however, did not mention any estimated time frame.  Also read: Zakir, Nazmul best performers of NCL 1st round At least seven cricketers including Mohammad Ashraful, Alok Kapali, Shadman Islam and Akbar Ali tested positive for Covid-19 since the start of the league.

While chasing a huge total of 141 runs in 10 overs in the third T20I against New Zealand, Bangladesh got all-out for 76 in 9.3 overs on Thursday at Auckland. This is the first time for Bangladesh to lose all 10 wickets in less than 10 overs in any format of international cricket. And with losing this game by 65 runs, Bangladesh losing-streak against New Zealand in New Zealand reached 32 international games— the longest losing streak in International cricket against a team in their backyard. Also read: New Zealand hit 141 in 3rd T20I vs Bangladesh Soumya Sarkar started well hitting two fours off the first three balls he faced but got out of the fourth delivery of the first over bowled by the New Zealand captain Tim Southee. Off the last ball of the first over, Liton Das, captain of Bangladesh in this game as the regular captain Mahmudullah Riyad was ruled out due to an injury, tried to scoop off the first ball but Southee shattered his stumps. Bangladesh were never in a position in this game to offer some challenge to the hosts who won the T20I series 3-0. They had also won the sealed ODI series by the same margin. Mohammad Naim smashed some watchful sixes and one four, but that was not enough to run for the win in the game which was reduced to 10-over a side due to rain before the match. Naim was the highest runs getter in this game for the visitors with 19 off 13 balls with two sixes and one four while Mosaddek Hossain scored 13 and Soumya posted 10. For the hosts, leg-spinner Todd Astle bagged four wickets conceding 13 runs in two overs while Tim Southee took three wickets giving only 15 runs away in three overs. Earlier, Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bowl first under the overcast condition. In the three-over powerplay, New Zealand smashed 43 for none. Nasum Ahmed started bowling conceding nine runs in the first over. In the second over, Taskin Ahmed conceded 14 runs, and Nasum came in the third over and gave away 23 runs with three fours and one six. Also read: Liton to lead Tigers in 3rd T20I vs Kiwis New Zealand continued to smash boundaries as Finn Allen completed his first T20I fifty off 18 balls with eight fours and two sixes. Finn got dismissed by Taskin in the last over as the substitute fielder Mehdiy Hasan Miraz took a tough catch at the boundary in the third man area. Finn ended up on 71 off 29 balls with 10 fours and three sixes. Bangladesh got the first wicket when Martin Guptil skied off Mahedi Hasan to the deep area and Afif Hossain took an easy catch. Guptil ended up on 44 off 19 balls with five sixes and one four. Eventually, New Zealand ended up 141 for four with Finn hitting the highest score of 71. For Bangladesh, Mahedi, Taskin and Shoriful bagged one wicket each while the other wicket fell prey to runout. Also read: Bangladesh want to end New Zealand tour with consolation win Before coming into the T20Is series, the Tigers have lost the three-match ODI series 3-0. Bangladesh played a total of 31 international matches in New Zealand but failed to come up victorious in any of them. Bangladesh made three changes in this game as Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mosaddek Hossain and Rubel Hossain came in to replace Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun and Mohammad Saifuddin.

New Zealand hit 141 for four in the third T20I against Bangladesh on Thursday at Auckland. The match was reduced to 10-over a side as the first two hours of the match was washed away due to rain. Liton Das is leading the Tigers in this game in the absence of the regular captain Mahmudullah Riyad who sustained a blow on this shoulder in the second game and ruled of this game.  Also Read: Bangladesh opt to bowl as 3rd T20 reduces to 10-over a side Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bowl first under the overcast condition.  In the three-over powerplay, New Zealand smashed 43 for none. Nasum Ahmed started bowling conceding nine runs in the first over. In the second over, Taskin Ahmed conceded 14 runs, and Nasum came in the third over and gave away 23 runs with three fours and one six.  Also Read: Liton to lead Tigers in 3rd T20I vs Kiwis New Zealand continued to smash boundaries as Finn Allen completed his first T20I fifty off 18 balls with eight fours and two sixes.  Finn got dismissed by Taskin in the last over as substitute fielder Mehdiy Hasan Miraz took a tough catch at the boundary in the third man area. Finn ended up on 71 off 29 balls with 10 fours and three sixes.  Bangladesh got the first wicket when Martin Guptil skied off Mahedi Hasan to the deep area and Afif Hossain took an easy catch. Guptil ended up on 44 off 19 balls with five sixes and one four.  Eventually, New Zealand ended up 141 for four with Finn hitting the highest score of 71.  For Bangladesh, Mahedi, Taskin and Shoriful bagged one wicket each while the other wicket fell prey to runout.  Before coming into the T20Is series, the Tigers have lost the three-match ODI series 3-0. Bangladesh played a total of 31 international matches in New Zealand but failed to come up victorious in any of them.  Bangladesh made three changes in this game as Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mosaddek Hossain and Rubel Hossain came in to replace Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun and Mohammad Saifuddin. 

Bangladesh won the toss opted to bowl first in the third T20I against Bangladesh in Auckland on Thursday. The match was scheduled to start at 12pm (Bangladesh time), but due to heavy rain, the match is delayed by more than two hours.  The match is reduced to 10-over a side, and the first three overs will be considered the powerplay.  Liton Das, the right-handed top-order batsman, is leading the Tigers in this game as the regular captain Mahmudullah Riyad sustained a blow in the second game and ruled out of this game.  Also read: Liton to lead Tigers in 3rd T20I vs Kiwis Bangladesh have already lost the series losing the first two games against the hosts. In the first game, Bangladesh lost by 66 runs, and in the rain-hit second game, the Tigers endured the defeat by 28 runs in the DL method.  Before coming into the T20Is series, the Tigers have lost the three-match ODI series 3-0. Bangladesh played a total of 31 international matches in New Zealand but failed to come up victorious in any of them.  Bangladesh made three changes in this game as Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mosaddek Hossain and Rubel Hossain came in to replace Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun and Mohammad Saifuddin.  Also read: Soumya hit fifty but Tigers lose T20Is series against Kiwis Bangladesh (Playing XI): Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mohammad Naim, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das(w/c), Afif Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Mosaddek Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Rubel Hossain, Nasum Ahmed Also read: Tigers start T20 series vs New Zealand with big defeat New Zealand (Playing XI): Martin Guptill, Finn Allen, Devon Conway(w), Will Young, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Tim Southee(c), Adam Milne, Todd Astle, Lockie Ferguson  

Liton Das is all set to lead the Tigers in international cricket for the first time, as the regular T20I captain Mahmudullah Riyad sustained a blow to his left thigh during the second game of the three-match series against New Zealand.  As Mahmudullah has been ruled out of the third T20I, Liton will lead the Tigers in this game in Auckland. New Zealand have already won the series, with Bangladesh having lost the first two games against the hosts. In the first game, Bangladesh lost by 66 runs, and in the rain-hit second game, the Tigers endured the defeat by 28 runs in the DL method. Liton has represented the Tigers in 22 Tests, 42 ODIs and 32 T20Is. He has become an integral part of the national team for a few years now. Also read: Soumya hit fifty but Tigers lose T20Is series against Kiwis However, Liton is yet to perform well in this series. Despite having some good starts, he has a lean run in the ODI series, and he has also failed to bat well in the T20I series so far. Also read: Tigers start T20 series vs New Zealand with big defeat The right-handed batsman has the record of hitting the highest individual ODI innings for the Tigers. He hit 176 against Zimbabwe in early 2020 in Sylhet. His highest in T20Is is 61 off 32 balls that came against the West Indies in Lauderhill in 2018.  

Germany midfielder Toni Kroos said it was “wrong” that Qatar was awarded next year’s World Cup and added that it could be appropriate to highlight human rights issues during the tournament. Kroos’ comments go beyond the criticism from several national teams, including Germany and Norway, which tried to draw attention to human rights issues ahead of recent World Cup qualifying matches. “For this tournament to be awarded there, I consider that wrong,” Kroos said on a podcast released Tuesday that he hosts with his brother. Kroos flagged up the working conditions for migrant workers, saying they were often “working without breaks, sometimes in 50-degree (Celsius) heat” without enough drinking water. He also noted anti-gay laws in the country and Qatar being ”not a soccer country.” Kroos, who was on the German team which won the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, said a boycott campaign was unlikely to have much effect but drawing attention to human rights issues during the tournament could help. Also read: Agreement on new Champions League format delayed until April “You have to ask the question: What would a boycott of a tournament like this bring? Is it really the case that something would drastically improve there? Would the working conditions change? I believe not,” Kroos said. “Rather, I believe that it is important to draw extreme attention to these problems once again, perhaps also maybe in advance of or during a tournament like this, so that maybe something can be improved because of that.” Kroos, who plays for Real Madrid, is not currently with the German team because of injury. Norway began a movement of human rights demonstrations by wearing shirts reading “HUMAN RIGHTS” and “Respect on and off the pitch” before its game against Gibraltar last Wednesday. Germany followed up with its own human rights messages before games, though its players and staff avoided directly criticizing Qatar, and teams like Belgium and the Netherlands have followed.

he Tigers now want to end their New Zealand tour with a consolation victory in the third T20 after being swept 3-0 in the ODI series and losing the first two T20s. Bangladesh's New Zealand tour started with the hope that the Tigers would register their maiden win in the island country against the hosts. They have played 31 matches against the Kiwis in New Zealand, but are yet to win a game against them here. Also read: Soumya hit fifty but Tigers lose T20Is series against Kiwis The final T20 match of the series is slated to be played on April 1 in Auckland at 12pm (Bangladesh time). Bangladesh top-order batsman Soumya Sarkar said, "We still believe that winning matches in New Zealand is still possible for us if we can play as a team and perform together." "The bowlers did well in one match, the batsmen in the other – this is how we played against New Zealand. But we have to play as a team if we want to win here," Soumya told the media over a video message. Also read: Tigers start T20 series vs New Zealand with big defeat "We were good at fielding in the last game but failed to bowl well and continue the good momentum while chasing a tough total. We have to play well in all three departments of the game." Bangladesh lost the first T20 of the series by 66 runs. They lost the next game by 28 runs in the DL method; Soumya hit a 50 but his effort went in vain as other batsmen failed to respond. Before the T20 series, the Tigers faced the hosts in a three-match ODI series which they lost 3-0.

Dhaka Division all-rounder Shuvagata Hom Wednesday hit a 100 against Sylhet Division on the third day of the second round of the 22nd National Cricket League in Cox's Bazar. On the same day, Rahatul Ferdous of Sylhet bagged seven wickets against Dhaka and Mukidul Islam of Rangpur registered his second six-wicket haul in the match against Khulna in Rangpur. NCL 2nd round score after day two Khulna vs Rangpur Khulna 1st innings 221/10 in 49.2 overs (Tushar 116, Nurul 31, Nahidul 29; Mukidul 6/64, Nobin 2/31, Ariful 2/54) Rangpur 1st innings 364/10 in 97.1 overs (Ariful 97, Nasir 66, Dhiman 43, Tanbir 31; Masum 4/78, Robiul 2/41, Abdul Halim 2/88) Khulna 2nd innings 259/10 in 69.3 overs (Amit 89, Ziaur 64, Imrul 31; Mukidul 6/67, Mahmudul 2/24) Rangpur 2nd innings 16/0 in 7 overs (Jahid 14*, Nobin 1*) Also read: NCL: Rajshahi pull off record win Sylhet vs Dhaka Division Sylhet 1st innings 370/10 in 114.4 overs (Zakir 159, Jaker 67, Asadullah 67; Shuvagata 4/86, Taibur 2/31, Sumon 2/55) Dhaka 1st innings 280/10 in 79.1 overs (Shuvagata 114, Saif 42, Joyraj 41, Arafat Sunny 37; Rahatul 7/75, Tanzim 2/63) Sylhet 2n innings 183/6 in 64.4 overs (Asadullah 74, Zakir 33, Sayem 31; Saif 2/19, Shuvagata 2/39) Also read: NCL: Tushar, Zakir continue to shine with bat Barishal vs Rajshahi Division Barishal 1st innings 82/10 in 29.3 overs (Moin 18, Salman 13, Moinul 12; Sunzamul 4/18, Taijul 4/39, Mohor 2/7) Rajshahi 1st innings 151/10 in 48.5 overs (Junaid 43, Taijul 37, Tanzid 36; Sohag 6/65, Monir 1/4) Barishal 2nd innings 60/10 in 34 overs (Moinul 28, Kamrul 14; Sunzamul 6/15, Taijul 4/23) Result: Rajshahi won by an innings and 9 runs and Taijul won the man of the match award. Also read: Zakir, Nazmul best performers of NCL 1st round Chattogram vs Dhaka Metro Chattogram 1st innings 402/8 (declared) in 126.3 overs (Pinak 159, Shahadat 53, Yasir 49; Arafat Sunny 3/120, Shohidul 2/78, Al Amin 1/26, Abu Haider 1/30) Dhaka Metro 1st innings 267/10 in 107.2 overs (Zahiduzzaman 71, Shamsur 68, Sharifullah 38, Al Amin 34; Hasan Murad 5/72, Mehedi Hasan Rana 2/74) Chattogram 2nd innings 43/1 in 17 overs (Mahmudul 20*, Sadikur 19*)