The first Test between Bangladesh and South Africa began on Thursday (March 31, 2022) at Kingsmead in Durban. When Tamim Iqbal was dropped from the playing XI for the first Test due to stomach pain, there was a fear that Bangladesh’s batting order would collapse against a well-versed South African bowling attack in the conditions. The concern was justified as most of Bangladesh's batters failed completely in the first innings, except for Mahmudul Hasan Joy. He was there at the crease till the end, playing the anchor role for the team. How Bangladesh players can take inspiration from Joy’s knock to save the first Test of the SA vs BAN series 2022 is discussed in this article. Mahmudul Hasan Joy's Maiden Test Hundred Highlights 21-year-old Mahmudul Hasan Joy made his Test debut last December against Pakistan. He made 0 and 6 in his first Test match but caught the eye of many after playing a determined 78-run knock against New Zealand in the first Test of 2-match series earlier this January. He stunned everyone by staying five hours at the crease and making 78 runs in 228 balls. His knock laid the foundation of Bangladesh’s first innings and eventually took a commanding lead over New Zealand. Bangladesh went on to win the contest by 8 wickets, and that was arguably the best ever Test win in Bangladesh's history. Read Pakistan easily beat Australia and clinch ODI series 2-1 Mahmudul Hasan’s 78-run knock can easily take a spot among the greatest Test innings by Bangladesh players. However, within three months, Joy produced his first Test hundred, which can be regarded as even better than the innings he played against New Zealand earlier this January. Mahmudul Hasan Joy opened the innings along with Shadman Islam in the first innings in the ongoing first match of the two-match Test series against South Africa. He stayed at the crease till the end and was the last man to get dismissed. Mahmudul Hasan Joy played the anchor role for the team and constructed some crucial partnerships in the middle. He found himself in both good and difficult situations while building his innings, but he didn’t lose his concentration. Mahmudul Hasan’s determination was on another level, which can’t be compared to other Bangladesh batters. Read Bangladesh 298 all out, South Africa lead by 75 in 1st Test Mahmudul Hasan made 137 runs in 326 balls after spending more than seven hours at the crease. Overall, he hit fifteen boundaries and two sixes in the innings. Mahmudul Hasan formed two vital partnerships: one with Najmul Hossain Shanto for 55 runs for the second wicket, and the other with Litton Das for 82 runs for the sixth wicket.  The level of maturity and responsibility he showed in his innings was really admirable. It was an unbelievable effort by a 21-year-old batter. The rest of Bangladesh's players, especially the batters, should take inspiration from his attitude and focus to thrive in the middle. With 137 runs, Mahmudul Hasan Joy also became the highest scorer among the Asian openers in South Africa. This was a really special achievement by Mahmudul Hasan. Read Magnificent Mahmudul hits ton against South Africa The Top Five Test Knocks in South Africa by Asian Openers Player Runs Mahmudul Hasan Joy (BAN) 137 Taufeeq Umar (PAK) 135 KL Rahul (IND) 123 Saeed Anwar (PAK) 118 Wasim Jaffer (IND) 116    Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read Bangladesh lose quick wickets to end Day 2 in Durban First Test Match Scenario of SA vs BAN Series 2022 Batting first, South Africa scored 367 in their first innings. Tamba Bavuma scored the most runs for the Proteas, while pacer Khaled Ahmed took the most wickets for Bangladesh. In reply, Bangladesh were bowled out for 298 in their first innings, 69 runs behind South Africa’s first innings (367) total. South Africa started their second innings in the final hour of day-3, and they would try to construct a lead in excess of 300 before giving Bangladesh a target to chase. The Bangladesh team has to play with a lot of determination in the fourth innings in order to earn a positive result. Therefore, the last two days of the match would be very interesting to watch. Read Pakistan level ODI series with 6-wicket win over Australia Bottom Line Mahmudul Hasan Joy showed real promise in the first innings. Joy's knock displays that anyone can play long innings on this surface if they can give themselves some time to adapt to the pitch conditions. Joy’s determination was on a different level, and the rest of the Bangladesh players needed to learn how to stay long at the crease in order to play long innings. The first Test match of the SA vs BAN series 2022 is evenly matched. Both Bangladesh and South Africa have the potential to win the opening match if they play with confidence for the remaining two days and execute their respective game plans properly. Read Tigers to host Lankan Lions in May for two Tests

Bangladesh made history by defeating South Africa for the first time in South Africa in the first ODI of the bilateral series. Bangladesh had to wait 20 years and 20 matches to win their first match against South Africa on South African soil. The roaring tigers beat the Proteas by 38 runs in front of their home fans at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday, (March 18). This victory will undoubtedly boost the visiting team's confidence for the remainder of the series. Let's have a look at how Bangladesh clinched the first ODI of the SA vs BAN 2022 series. Match Report: South Africa-Bangladesh First ODI 2022 An amazing one-day victory against South Africa is a huge achievement for Bangladesh cricket after winning a Test match against New Zealand at home last January. Moreover, the team tigers' rapid growth in cricket sends a strong message to the International Cricket Council that Bangladesh are on its way to becoming a competitive cricket nation. Bangladesh Innings The chasing team has a higher success rate at SuperSport Park in Centurion because the ground is somewhat smaller and more conducive to batters. Therefore, chasing is easy on this well-known ground. Taking these factors into account, the South African captain, Temba Bavuma decided to bat first against Bangladesh. However, the Proteas bowlers failed to capture early wickets in Bangladesh's innings, allowing the openers to build a solid partnership. Read Team Tigers beat SA to create history Tamim and Litton put on a 95-run opening stand in 21.3 overs. Both players appeared to be sturdy in the center and on their way to making big plays. But both openers fell in the space of one over, and veteran Mushfiqur Rahim followed them to the pavilion a few overs later. Even after a strong start, Bangladesh were reduced to 124/3. A big partnership was required for a competitive total, and Shakib-Yasir's 115-run stand helped Bangladesh break the 200-run barrier quickly. Shakib Al Hasan set the tone for the remainder of the batters by smashing a strong 77 in the middle. On the other side, Yasir Ali made a quick-fire 50. Following their departures, Mahmudullah Riyad (25), Afif Hossain (17), and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (19*) produced key innings in the middle-order to enable Bangladesh to reach 314/7. South Africa's Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj both took two wickets.  South Africa Innings The South Africans should have had no trouble chasing down 315 runs to win the match. However, the hosts lost three quick wickets for only 36 runs, putting them under a lot of pressure. At the start of the innings, medium-pacer Taskin Ahmed was superb with the ball. He took two out of the three batters. Read Women’s World Cup: When Bangladesh snatched defeat from the jaws of victory Following that, skipper Temba Bavuma and Rassie van der Dussen attempted to rebuild the innings with an 85-run partnership. Their collaboration brought the total to 121. Pacer, Shoriful Islam ended the partnership by taking Bavuma's wicket. South Africa was still in contention when Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller were at the crease. However, South Africa's hopes were dashed when both batters went to the pavilion. South Africa lost all of their wickets for 276 runs in 48.5 overs. Rassie van der Dussen scored the most runs with 86, followed by David Miller with 79. Bangladesh's Taskin Ahmed was crucial at the start of the innings, while Mehidy Miraz finished the job by capturing the South African tail-enders. Miraz got the most wickets with four, while Taskin took three.  Player of the Match   Shakib Al Hasan was awarded player of the match. His counter-attacking 77 off 64 balls innings spurred the remainder of Bangladesh's middle order to score big against South Africa. Read Shakib to play all matches during SA tour: Tamim Way Forward Prior to the first ODI, the Bangladesh limited-overs cricket team was under pressure to put up a brave effort against South Africa in order to exhibit their progress on the international stage. Therefore, the BCB added a pair of former South African internationals to the Tigers' ODI coaching staff. These arrangements worked perfectly in the first match, as Bangladesh shocked the home team with a comfortable victory. This win is undoubtedly a momentous occasion for Bangladesh cricket. Hopefully, many more successes will follow in the coming years on South African soil. Bangladesh will be eying to wrap up the ODI format SA vs BAN 2022 series when the two teams meet on Sunday (March 20) in Johannesburg.  Read Bangladesh eager to change history in South Africa: Tamim