Liton Das
Chattogram Test: Imperious Liton strikes maiden ton
Liton Das smashed an unbeaten maiden Test century to guide Bangladesh to post a comfortable 253 for four on the first day of the first Test against Pakistan on Friday in Chattogram.
This has been an imperious comeback of the wicket-keeper-batter, who was dropped from the recently held three-match T20I series against Pakistan for his poor form.
Mushfiqur Rahim, who was also out of the T20I series, made an unbeaten 82 in a stylish comeback with Liton.
Liton was also unbeaten at 113 for 225 with 11 fours and one six.
In the unbroken fifth wicket stand, the two experienced players added 204 runs on the board after losing four wickets in the morning session. This is now the fourth highest fifth wicket stand for Bangladesh in Tests.
Right before the series against Pakistan, Liton had a stinging World Cup campaign in Oman and the UAE where he played eight matches to score only 133 runs at an average of 16.62. It was enough for Bangladesh selectors to leave him out of the T20I team.
Read: Mominul expects batting-friendly wicket in 1st Test vs Pakistan in Chattogram
However, Liton finally proved that his bad patch was gone, and he got his zeal back on the track.
The right-handed batsman completed his maiden Test ton in 199 balls. He surpassed his previous best of 95 against Zimbabwe.
Riding on wonderful batting efforts from Mushfiqur and Liton, Bangladesh went to the stumps on the first day without losing any wicket in the second and third session.
Earlier, in the first session, Bangladesh lost four wickets for 49.
Saif Hassan and Shadman Islam, Bangladesh’s Test openers, failed to lay down a solid foundation when they both were back to the dressing room in no time. Both contributed 14 each.
Tigers trounce Oman A in warm-up match
Riding on the half-centuries of Mohammad Naim and Liton Das, and a tremendous innings of 49 off just 15 balls by Nurul Hasan Sohan, Bangladesh defeated Oman A in a warm-up match by 60 runs on Friday.
It was an unofficial practice match for the Tigers ahead of the T20 World Cup, which is set to begin on October 17 in the Gulf state.
The hosts won the toss in Friday’s match and opted to bowl first. But they conceded 207 runs in 20 overs.
READ: T20 World Cup warm-up match: Bangladesh take on Oman A Friday
Naim and Liton amassed more than 100 runs in the opening stand. Naim was slow and steady, while Liton played power cricket as he scored 53 off just 33 deliveries with six fours and one six.
However, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim and Afif Hossain failed to impress with the bat. While Soumya and Afif scored 8 and 6 respectively, Mushfiqur suffered a golden duck.
Sohan came in at number six and quickly put up 49 runs off just 15 balls with seven big sixes. Shamim Hossain also did well, scoring 19 off 10. Naim was the highest scorer for Bangladesh, posting 63 off 53 with three hours and two sixes. Bangladesh totalled 207 for four wickets.
However, Oman tumbled for 147 for nine wickets in 20 overs. Left-handed Bangladeshi pacer Shoriful Islam bagged three wickets while Mohammad Saifuddin took two. Nasum Ahmed, Mahefi Hasan and Afif scalped one wicket each.
READ: Nazmul becomes BCB president for next four years
Bangladesh will play two official warm-up matches against Sri Lanka and Ireland on October 12 and 14, respectively, ahead of the World Cup in the UAE. In the first round of the World Cup, Bangladesh will take on Scotland, Oman and Papua New Guinea.
Liton to miss Australia T20 series
After Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das became the latest Bangladesh player to miss the upcoming five-match T20 series against Australia at home.
The series is set to begin on August 3 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka.
The wicketkeeper-batsman suffered a thigh injury during the first T20 against Zimbabwe that forced him to miss the remaining matches of the series.
READ: BAN vs. ZIM 2021: Bangladesh Player Ratings for T20I Series
Mushfiqur has been ruled out of the Australia series as he missed out on the quarantine deadline. Tamim is out with a knee injury that he sustained during the Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division T20 Cricket League.
Mustafizur Rahman is also doubtful for the first two matches against the visiting Australian side. He suffered a blow to his ankle during a tour match in Zimbabwe that took place ahead of the ODI series.
Soumya Sarkar and Shakib Al Hasan have also been nursing injuries. They, however, will take part in the Australia series.
READ: Tigers chase down 194 to seal T20 series against Zimbabwe
Bangladesh will heavily rely on the youngsters against the visitors.
The Tigers won the one-off Test, three ODIs and two T20s in their recent Zimbabwe tour.
Tamim, Shohan guide Tigers to ODI series sweep against Zimbabwe
They say it all begins at the top. And for Bangladesh too, openers Tamim Iqbal and Liton Das did it all.
Yes, with Tamim smashing his fastest ODI ton and later Nurul Hasan Shohan celebrating his comeback, the Tigers Tuesday registered a clean sweep against host Zimbabwe in the three-match series at Harare Sports Club.
In the last game of the ODI series on Tuesday, the Tigers beat Zimbabwe by five wickets chasing a target of 299 runs. In fact, Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bowl first. Batting first, the hosts scored 298/10 -- their highest in this series.
Also read: Tamim to miss home series against Australia, New Zealand
In reply, Tamim and Liton added 88 runs in the opening stand and set a solid foundation in pursue of a big total.
Liton fell for 32 but Tamim was firm at the other end of the wicket. Shakib Al Hasan joined Tamim, and together they added 59 runs on the score board. Shakib had missed a ton for four runs in the previous match, and this time, he ended up on 30 off 42.
Tamim fell for 112 when Bangladesh were batting at 204. Before falling prey to Donald Tiripano, Tamim completed his ton off 87 balls -- his fastest in the format. Right after Tamim’s dismissal, Mahmudullah Riyad suffered a golden duck, and all of a sudden, Bangladesh were facing trouble.
However, Mohammad Mithun and Shohan put on a fifth-wicket stand of 64 runs, which helped the Tigers keep the scoreboard afloat.
Also read: Chakabva, Raza, Burl propel Zimbabwe to 298 in 3rd ODI
It was Shohan’s first ODI in five years. He grabbed the opportunity in two hands as he struck 45 off 39 balls and remained unbeaten. He and Afif Hossain added 34 runs for the sixth wicket to seal the game.
Bangladesh scored 302 for five and won the game by five wickets.
Wessley Madhevere and Donald Tiripano took two wickets each for Zimbabwe.
Earlier, Regis Chakabva, who opened the innings for the hosts, scored 84 off 91 balls with seven fours and one six. It was his second fifty in the series.
For the sixth wicket, Sikandar Raza and Ryan Burl added 112 runs, the highest runs in a single partnership in Zimbabwe’s innings. The stand was broken by Mustafizur, who was playing his first ODI in this series, removing Raza for 57 off 54 balls.
But Burl was there in the middle. Before falling prey to Saifuddin, Burl posted 59 off 43 with four fours and as many as sixes.
Saifuddin bagged three wickets in the 48th over removing Burl, Donald Tiripano and Tendai Chatara. Saifuddin conceded 87 runs in eight overs to take three wickets. Mustafizur also bagged three wickets conceding 57 runs. They eventually put together 298 in 49.3 overs.
The series is a part of the World Cup Super League. The top seven teams of this event along with the shots, India, will qualify directly for World Cup 2023.
After the three-match ODI series, both teams will lock horns in a three-match T20 series. All the matches will take place at the same venue. Before the limited-over series, Bangladesh took on the hosts in a one-off Test and won that match by 220 runs.
Mahmudullah, Shakib and Liton set to feature in PSL
Veteran Bangladeshi allrounders Mahmudullah Riyad, Shakib Al Hasan and wicketkeeper-batsman Liton Das are set to feature in the resumption of this year's chequered Pakistan Super League (PSL), a T20 league organized by Pakistan Cricket Board (BCB), as the replacement players.
These three Bangladeshi players are among the 19 overseas players who have been picked up by the PSL teams from the replacement draft. The other players are from Australia, West Indies, South Africa, Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
Right-handed allrounder Mahmudullah will represent Multan Sultans in the remainder of the PSL. He had previously played for Quetta Gladiators in this event.
Left-arm allrounder Shakib Al Hasan, who is recently busy playing the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Kolkata Knight Riders, will play for Lahore Qalandars. Shakib had previously represented Karachi Kings and Peshawar Zalmi in PSL.
Liton, on the other hand, is all set to play for Karachi Kings. It’ll be his second appearance in a foreign league. He previously played for Jamaica Tallawahs in Caribbean Premier League.
While Shakib is busy in IPL, Mahmudullah currently at home and Liton is touring Sri Lanka with the Bangladesh team to play a two-match Test series against the hosts.
There are a total of 34 matches in PSL and 15 of them have already been played. The remainder of the league will resume from June 1 and will run to June 20. All the matches will take place at the National Stadium, Karachi.
BAN vs SL Cricket Test series 2021: Expected personal milestones to achieve
Bangladesh are gearing up for the Test series against Sri Lanka, which is also part of ICC’s Test Championship. The first match will be held from April 21 to 25, and the second Test will begin on April 29. Pallekele Stadium will host both matches. Bangladesh's Test record against Sri Lanka is very poor, so team tigers' main focus would be to improve their Test record against Sri Lanka. Besides, some players will get the opportunity to achieve individual milestones during the series. In this article, we discussed expected personal milestones to achieve in Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka Test series 2021.
Expected milestones that can be reached in Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka series
14000 International Runs
Veteran Tamim Iqbal needs 282 runs to complete his 14,000 runs in the international arena. So far, he has scored 13,718 runs playing for Bangladesh, ICC XI, and World XI.
14000 runs for Bangladesh
Tamim Iqbal has scored 13,661 runs in 349 international appearances for Bangladesh. He needs 339 more runs to score 14,000 runs for the tigers across all formats.
Read: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka 2021: Analysis of Bangladesh’s Test Squad for Sri Lanka Series
4000 International Runs
Bangladesh Test captain Mominul Haque has scored 3,665 runs in 76 international appearances. He needs 335 runs to complete 4,000 runs in the international circuit.
3000 International Runs
Wicket-keeper batsman Liton Das needs only 140 runs to complete his 3,000 runs in the international arena. Liton has scored 2,860 runs in 96 international matches.
1000 Test Runs
Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz will complete his 1,000 Test runs if he scores 164 runs in upcoming Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh series.
150 International Wickets
Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam needs 11 more wickets to complete his 150 international wickets for Bangladesh. Taijul has picked 139 wickets in 42 matches.
Read: T20 World Cup 2021: Five Things the Bangladesh Team Needs To Address Before the World T20 2021
50 International Wickets
Right-arm medium pacer Abu Jayed Chowdhury Rahi requires 11 wickets to reach the 50 international wickets milestone. Rahi has bagged 39 wickets in 15 appearances for Bangladesh.
50 International Dismissals
Liton Das only 3 dismissals away to complete his 50 international dismissals for Bangladesh.
50 International Catches
Liton Das only 4 catches away to complete his 50 international catches for Bangladesh.
350 International Appearances
Tamim will become the second player after Mushfiqur Rahim to play 350 matches for Bangladesh when he stepped on the field for the first Test against Sri Lanka.
9000 International Runs
Dinesh Chandimal has scored 8,724 runs in 268 international appearances. He needs 276 runs to complete 9,000 runs in the international circuit.
Read: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka 2021: Five Things Bangladesh Cricket Team Must Do To win the Test Series in Sri Lanka
150 International Appearances
Lankan top-order batsman Kusal Mendis only one match away to complete his 150 appearances for Sri Lanka.
5000 Test Runs
Sri Lankan Test captain Dimurth Karunaratne has scored 4,748 runs in 70 Test appearances. He needs 252 runs to complete 5,000 runs in Tests.
2000 Test Runs
Lahiru Thirimanne has scored 1,863 runs in 40 matches and he only needs 137 runs to reach the 2,000 Test runs milestone.
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1000 Test Runs
Pacer Suranga Lakmal will complete his 1,000 Test runs if he scores 136 runs in upcoming Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka series.
50 Test Wickets
Slow left-arm orthodox spinner Lasith Embuldeniya is only one wicket shy to complete 50 scalps in Tests. The talented youngster has bagged 49 wickets in just 11 matches for Sri Lanka.
50 Test Wickets
Left-arm pacer Vishwa Fernando has scalped 36 wickets in 12 matches, therefore he needs 14 more wickets to complete 50 Test wickets for Sri Lanka.
Bottom Line
Players will be eager to achieve their personal milestones in Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka Test series 2021, but the main focus should be to win the series. The two teams have played a total of 20 Test matches between them. Sri Lanka won 16 games, three were drawn, and Bangladesh only won one game. Bangladesh's only Test victory against Sri Lanka came in 2017. Sri Lanka's current Test setup is not particularly strong. In that perspective, Bangladesh have a fair chance of winning the series against Sri Lanka.
Read: How COVID-19 Pandemic has changed ICC’s cricket schedule
Bangladesh vs New Zealand T20I Series 2021: Report Card of Bangladeshi players
Bangladesh lost the three-match T20I series to New Zealand (3-0) after losing the third match by a massive 65-run margin at Eden Park in Auckland on Thursday (April 1). Three senior players of the team Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, and Mushfiqur Rahim didn't take part in the series for separate reasons. Team tigers had struggled against the Blackcaps because of their absence but the rest of the players should have done better during the contest. There was high hope from the young players but we had seen nothing remarkable from them. Here is the performance report card of Bangladeshi players.
Bangladeshplayers’performance breakdown against New Zealand T20I series 2021
Batting/Top orders
Bangladesh only had one half-century in the series. As per these stats, the batting performance of the Bangladesh team in the contest was disappointing.
Soumya Sarkar
The left-handed batsman Soumya Sarkar scored Bangladesh's only half-century in the series. Hitting 3 sixes, Soumya played a lethal innings of 51 runs from 27 balls in the second match in Napier. But he failed to score big in the rest of the two matches. In three matches, Soumya Sarkar scored 66 runs at a strike rate of 178.37.
Mohammad Naim
Prospective opener Mohammad Naim scored the highest 84 runs with a strike rate of 127.27 for Bangladesh in this series. Naim was unable to prolong his innings despite having a great start in each match. His best 38 runs in the series came in the second match. Soumya and Naim put on an 81-run partnership for the second wicket in that match. Mohammad Naim would need to develop the mindset of playing big innings if he wants to secure his place in the Bangladesh team.
Read Key ODI Records between Bangladesh and New Zealand
Liton Das
Liton Das, who led Bangladesh in the third match, failed with the bat throughout the tour. He only scored 10 runs at a strike rate of 90 in the T20 series. Liton has yet to master the art of batting technique on New Zealand's bouncy wicket despite having played in the international arena for 6-7 years. Liton will have to show more consistency in the future if he wants to prolong his international career.
Najmul Hossain Shanto
Injured Mahmudullah Riyad was replaced by Najmul Hossain Shanto in the third match. But the left-arm batsman could not take advantage, he only scored 8 runs in that match. Nazmul continues to struggle despite getting multiple chances. Someone else will take his place in the national team if he does not demonstrate his talent properly. So, Shanto will have to show more promise if he gets another chance in the national team set up.
Read: Pro Kabaddi Tournament Could Rejuvenate Bangladesh’s National Sport
Batting/Middle-Order
Mahmudullah Riyad
Mahmudullah Riyadh is the only Bangladeshi senior player who took part in the series. Though he could not play the last match due to injury. Like other Bangladeshi batsmen, he also failed miserably in this series. Bangladesh's T20 captain only scored 32 runs in the first two matches. He scored his personal best 21 runs in the second match of the series.
Mohammad Mithun
Mohammad Mithun was completely lackluster in the T20 series despite batting well in the ODI series. Bangladesh team management expected good performance from him. The selectors were frustrated with his performance. Mithun only managed to score 5 runs in two matches.
Read How to Become a Cricketer in Bangladesh: An Overall Guideline
Afif Hossain
The promising young batsman Afif Hossain scored the third-highest 55 runs in the series for Bangladesh. In which, 45 runs from 33 balls came from the first match. Afif had a strike rate of 126.90 in the series. The left-handed Afif Hossain is becoming an important player in Bangladesh's T20 format setup.
Mosaddek Hossain, MahediHasan, and Mohammad Saifuddin
Among other batsmen, Mosaddek Hossain scored 13 runs in one match, Mahadi Hasan 12 runs in three matches, and Mohammad Saifuddin 36 runs in two matches. Saifuddin played an effective innings of 34 runs in the first match.
Read: Bangladesh vs New Zealand 2021: Tamim-led team shows promise in 2nd ODI
Bowling/Pace
Bangladeshi bowlers were unable to stop New Zealand batsmen from scoring runs in all three matches. The bowlers had given up a lot of runs during the series. As a result, Bangladesh had no notable performances in this series.
Taskin Ahmed
In this series, Taskin Ahmed was the most effective Bangladeshi fast bowler. In two matches, he picked up the most two wickets. However, with an economic rate of 12.51, he was the most expensive bowler in the series. If Taskin is to reclaim his place in the Bangladesh team, he must become more productive.
Shoriful Islam
Young left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam snatched two wickets in the series. However, he was less expensive than Taskin. His economy rate in the series was 9.66. Everyone expects Shoriful will be a regular member of the future Bangladesh national side pace attack.
Mohammad Saifuddin
Mohammad Saifuddin has yet to fully regain his rhythm since recovering from his injury. Saifuddin took part in two matches in the T20 series and snatched only 1 wicket. However, with an economy rate of 11.14, he gave up 78 runs in 7 overs.
Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hossain
Bangladesh's two best fast bowlers Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hossain failed to pick up any wickets in the series. They each played one match. Furthermore, they gave away a lot of runs.
Read Mashrafe Mortaza drops a bombshell over his alleged T20 retirement in 2017
Bowling/Spin
MahediHasan
Spinner MahediHasan was the most successful Bangladeshi bowler in this series. He took the highest 4 wickets in 3 matches. However, the opposition batters picked up a lot of runs from his ball. His bowling economy in this series was 11.60.
Nasum Ahmed
Among the Bangladeshi bowlers, newcomer Nasum Ahmed was the least expensive. He took a total of 2 wickets in 3 matches at a 6.40 economy rate. Nasum was able to grab the attention of the selectors straight away.
Read How Can Bangladesh directly qualify for the world cup 2023?
Fielding
While fielding, Bangladesh had given up too many runs. They dropped catches and showed poor performance on the field.In a nutshell, Bangladeshi players lacked the motivation to put extra effort on the field.
Bottom Line
As per the report card of Bangladeshi players, none of the cricketers had significant improvement in the series. They should have performed better as a team in this contest to boost their confidence for the future. Bangladesh team has a strong chance of performing well in the next T20 world cup in India. As a result, the selectors should focus on building a strong T20 squad for the tournament.
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Liton to lead Tigers in 3rd T20I vs Kiwis
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.
West Indies lead by 154 after Tigers bag 3 early wickets
Bangladesh has managed to make a comeback in the Dhaka Test riding on the 50s of Mushfiqur Rahim, Liton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz.