While the Bangladesh men’s cricket team is struggling in World Cup 2023, the Bangladesh women’s cricket team made history by winning a T20 series against Pakistan at home. These young women might not get as much attention as the men’s cricket team, but they show incredible determination, strength, and skill. Even though they do not get the deserved recognition or pay, the Bangladesh women’s cricket team consistently make all-out efforts. Now, it is high time for Bangladesh to focus on women’s cricket too.

Bangladesh Women’s Cricket: Performances in 2023

Bangladesh’s men’s cricket team had faced disappointment three times in the Asia Cup final; the women’s cricket team brought us a championship in the 2018 Asia Cup. Apart from this, Tigressed have other achievements too. Let’s dive deep.

ODI

This year, the Bangladesh Women’s team has played 5 ODIs and won one match against the India Women’s team. Indian team visited Bangladesh in July 2023 for a three-match ODI series. Tigress got their maiden win against India in the first match on July 16, 2023. Bangladesh Women’s team set a target of 152 for 9 in 43 overs, and India was all out for 113 and lost the match by 40 runs. However, Bangladesh lost the next game. Apart from this, Bangladesh also lost a match against Sri Lanka on May 4, 2023. Further, there was one no result against Sri Lanka, and one match was tied against India.

16 years ago, the women’s cricket team entered international cricket through a match against Thailand in Bangkok. After winning the first two matches, Tigresses took part in the ACC Women’s Tournament and won the title that year. 

After that, the Bangladesh team led by Salma Khatun did not have to look back. However, in 2011, the Tigresses achieved an important milestone under coach Mamatha Maben. Despite finishing in 5th place in the Women’s World Cup Qualifier held on their own soil, the Bangladesh team won ODI status for the first time.

The Bangladesh women’s cricket team, which entered the top ten in the global rankings, then played a total of 57 ODIs until October 31, 2023, including bilateral and trilateral series. Bangladesh women’s cricket team won 15 ODI matches so far; 5 matches remain without results and tied in one match. Bangladesh women’s team is now ranked eighth in ICC Women’s ODI Rankings.

T20I

The roar of the Tigresses has been felt in the shortest and most popular version of current cricket, T20. The statistics of 42 wins in 107 matches are not very surprising, but once the top position of the ICC T20 ranking was occupied by the Tigresses. Bangladesh women’s cricket team is now ranked ninth in ICC Women’s T20I Rankings.

This year, Tigress played 15 T20I matches on home ground and abroad. But, the team could not get enough success at the beginning of this year. Most recently, they made history by winning a T20I series against Pakistan. Among the 15 T20I matches played this year, the Bangladesh women’s team won only five games.

The Bangladesh women’s cricket team has not made it to the finals of the ODI World Cup yet, but they have already competed in three T20 World Cups. In this edition of the World Cup qualifiers, they have been champions twice. In addition, this year, the team led by Nigar Sultana and Jahanara has won three of their last five T20 matches. The Bangladesh women’s cricket team has also achieved significant success in the Asian Games, earning silver medals in both the 2010 and 2014 editions.

Read more: Bangladesh win historic Women's T20 series against Pakistan

ODI and Test Status

On November 24, 2011, Bangladesh achieved ODI status by beating USA with 9 wickets in the 2011 Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier. This victory ensured that Bangladesh would be among the top 6 teams in the tournament and be ranked in the top 10 globally, which was the condition for getting ODI status. In April 2021, the ICC granted permanent Test and One Day International (ODI) status to all full-member women’s teams. But Tigresses are yet to play their debut test match.

Bangladesh won the 3-match T20I Series against Pakistan

Recently, Bangladeshi women won a T20I series against Pakistan by 2-1, which took place from October 25 to October 29. Bangladesh won the second T20 in a row against Pakistani girls in Chattogram on October 27. The Tigresses were happy to beat Pakistan by 20 runs in the second T20 of the three-match series.

In September 2023, Tigresses won the bronze medal by defeating Pakistan in the Asian Games. And winning a series against Pakistan in Bangladesh is another achievement for confident Tigresses. Bangladesh made history by winning the series for the first time in T20I with one match in hand, defeating the Pakistani women by 20 runs in the second match.

Pakistan lost the toss in the first match, and they were to bat first. Pakistan women's team were bowled out for 82 runs in 19.4 overs. Nahida did an excellent job by taking five wickets while giving away only 8 runs in 3.4 overs. When it was their turn to bat and chase a target of 83 runs, Nigar Sultana played a great inning, scoring 26 runs without getting out. This helped her team secure a victory with just three balls to spare, with Murshida Khatun contributing 23 runs. Nahida was awarded the player of the match for her outstanding performance.

In the second match, Shamima Sultana and Murshida Khatun gave Bangladesh a strong start in their batting. The pace of scoring slowed down as time went on, but thanks to Swarna Akhter’s determination, Bangladesh managed to set a challenging score for Pakistan. They won the toss and chose to bat, and team Red and Green scored 120 runs from 6 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Swarna was the standout player, finishing unbeaten with a top score of 27 runs from 22 balls, including one four and one six. Sharifa Khatun also remained unbeaten with just 1 run. In response, the visiting team struggled and could only score 100 runs for 7 wickets in the specified overs. As a result, the Tigresses made history by winning the match by 20 runs. Swarna Akhter, who played a crucial role, was named the player of that match.

Pakistan won the third T20I and avoided a whitewash to make the series 2-1. Bangladesh scored 101 runs for 9 wickets in their 20 overs, while Pakistan, who batted first, managed to score 132 runs for 4 wickets. As a result, Pakistan won the match with a lead of 31 runs.

Bangladesh Women's Cricket Team's Performance in the International Tournaments

So far, Bangladesh’s women’s cricket team participated in several international tournaments, including World Cup, World T20, Asia Cup, Asian Games, and South Asian Games.

World Cup

Tigress appeared in the 2022 Women’s World Cup, and it was their first appearance. However, before that, Bangladesh played in the qualification round in 2013 and 2017. But they failed to qualify. Bangladesh left the group stage in the 2022 Women’s World Cup in Australia, and they won only one match against Pakistan.

World T20

Compared to the ODI, Bangladesh women’s performance in the T20 is significant. So far, they appeared in five T20 World Cups from 2014-2023. Unfortunately, they could not advance to the knockout stage and left the group stage in all five tournaments.

Asia Cup

Bangladesh participated in the Asia Cup ODI Internationals in 2008, and they left from the group stage. However, that was the last Asia Cup ODI event. After that, all the Asia Cup events were in T20 format. And Bangladesh participated in all four Asia Cup T20 events in 2012, 2016, 2018, and 2022. Bangladesh won the Asia Cup title in 2018 and reached the semi-finals in 2012. Tigressed failed to advance to the knockout stage in 2016 and 2022.

Asian Games

Bangladesh women’s cricket team joined three Asian Games in 2010, 2014, and 2022. Among these three appearances, they won the Silver Medal in the Asian Games in 2010 and 2014. Tigresses acquired the Bronze Medal in the 2022 Asia Games Cricket (held in September 2023).

Read more: Asia Games Cricket: Bangladesh women win bronze beating Pakistan by 5 wickets

South Asian Games

The women’s cricket team of Bangladesh joined one South Asian Games in 2019, and they became the champions by winning all four matches against Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Maldives.

Prospects of Bangladesh Women’s Cricket and Some Harsh Realities

However, despite all these achievements, the issue of salary and difference in treatment between male and female cricketers is causing a storm in the cricket world. Especially after the girls won the Asia Cup in 2018, this issue came into the discussion.

As per BCB’s announcement in June 2023, the women cricketers under the central contract with the BCB will have their salary cap raised to Tk 1,00,000, with the minimum salary set at Tk 50,000. The previous salary cap was Tk 80,000, and the minimum was Tk 25,000. Currently, there are 25 women cricketers under contract with the BCB. Additionally, the match fee for “A” team women cricketers has been increased to Tk 1,50,000.

On the other hand, the minimum salary for the Bangladesh men’s team starts at Tk 1,00,000, while the maximum salary is Tk 4,50,000. 

The victory in the 2018 Asia Cup was a significant turning point for women’s cricket. It caught people’s attention and demonstrated that female cricketers in the country can achieve greatness for the nation, even though they have received less attention compared to the men’s game in terms of facilities, fan support, and other factors. However, five years later, there seems to be a lack of progress, and things have somewhat stalled. Now, here is the harsh reality: despite many promises, there has been limited progress.

In the current ICC revenue-sharing model, women’s team performance in ICC events is considered an important factor, just like the men’s game. However, the Tigresses have struggled to make a significant impact and have mostly been seen as participants rather than competitive contenders. In this case, BCB’s effort and attention towards the Tigresses is necessary. Further, a proper long-term plan is also necessary.

What can be done to support Bangladesh Women’s Cricket?

When we examine the current state of women’s cricket worldwide, it becomes clear that Bangladesh still has a long way to go to catch up. However, the more pressing concern should be breaking free from the current stagnation. While a couple of wins are certainly admirable, they won’t be enough to meet the long-term plans necessary for sustained growth.

In the 2020 T20 World Cup, the largest audience for a women’s game was in Australia. Although the ICC proudly talks about the increasing interest in women’s cricket, it’s a different story here in Bangladesh. The women’s game struggles to attract crowds, making it more challenging to secure sponsors. In Bangladesh, women’s cricket is often considered secondary to the men’s game. In contrast, India has launched its franchise tournament, WPL, which has gained a lot of attention and popularity.

In Bangladesh, the growth of women’s cricket faces more significant societal challenges compared to many other countries. These constraints have hindered the development of women’s cricket. However, what has also contributed to the stagnation and setbacks for the Tigresses is the absence of long-term planning, unmet financial security needs, and inadequate facilities.

Hence, a proper long-term plan along with salary revisions should be done in the first place. BCB can follow other countries as well as our neighbour India to improve the women’s cricket scenario in Bangladesh.

Final Words

Bangladesh women’s cricket has the potential to achieve even greater heights, but it requires collective efforts, investment, and support from the cricketing community, fans, and authorities. With the right strategies and equal opportunities, the Tigresses can continue to make their mark on the international stage.

Read more: Fargana becomes first Bangladeshi to score a century in Women's ODIs