United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh achieved a milestone on Wednesday (August 10) in addition to defeating Zimbabwe to avert a clean sweep. The Bangladesh men's cricket team became the tenth cricketing nation to play 400 ODI matches after making their ODI debut on March 31, 1986. The team Tigers has seen many highs and lows over the past 36 years, but it is commonly known that the majority of their success has come in the one-day format. Bangladesh’s journey to 400 ODI matches is discussed in this article. Early years of the Bangladesh national ODI team Bangladesh’s journey in ODI cricket started during the Asia Cup in 1986 when they faced Pakistan at the Tyronne Fernando Stadium in Moratuwa. The Gazi Ashraf Hossain-led Bangladesh ODI team lost the contest against Imran Khan-led Pakistan by 7 wickets. In the early years, Bangladesh used to compete primarily in the Asia Cup cricket competition, where they frequently suffered crushing defeats at the hands of Asian powerhouses. Bangladesh took part in eight different competitions before eventually registering their first-ever ODI victory on May 17, 1998, in the Coca-Cola Triangular series against Kenya. They overcame the Kenyan national side by 6 wickets. Before that, Bangladesh had lost 22 straight one-day internationals, including six losses against India. Read Shakib cancels contract with Betwinner News after BCB warning Champions of the ICC Trophy and obtaining ODI status Cricket in Bangladesh was significantly impacted by the 1997 ICC Trophy. The national team of Bangladesh won the ICC Trophy '97 by defeating Kenya by two wickets (D/L method) in the championship match, securing their spot in the 1999 ICC ODI Cricket World Cup. For the first time, Bangladesh successfully won the major competition for associate nations of the International Cricket Council. They subsequently earned the opportunity to participate in ODIs as regular ICC members. Bangladesh’s first appearance in the ICC ODI World Cup Bangladesh made their first appearance in the 50-over format World Cup in the 1999 edition. They shocked Pakistan by 62 runs while defeating Scotland by 22 runs in the World Cup 99 group stage. The victory over Pakistan was a significant turning point in Bangladesh's cricket history because it was the first time the Tigers had defeated an ICC full member team in an ODI. Read BCB to Shakib: Quit Betwinner News or get out of national team The Roaring Tigers defeated Pakistan on May 31, 1999, at the County Ground in Northampton, and the entire country celebrated in jubilation. Eventually, Bangladesh's first World Cup campaign came to an end with two victories and three losses, placing them fifth in group B. Bangladesh's noteworthy victories in ODIs (2000–2014) The Bangladesh national side had to wait five years to record their fourth victory in the One-Day International format since their historic victory against Pakistan in the 1999 ICC Cricket World Cup. They defeated Zimbabwe by 8 runs in a bilateral ODI series game at the Harare Sports Club in March 2004. One year later, in January 2005, Bangladesh won their first ever bilateral ODI series. They beat the Zimbabwean side 3-2, securing a historic ODI series win. In the same year, Bangladesh defeated the world champions Australia at Cardiff's Sophia Gardens in a Natwest Series game by a margin of five wickets. Mohammad Ashraful made his name by scoring a spectacular hundred in the game. Read Asia Cup 2022: Who are favourites to lift the trophy? In the following years, Bangladesh achieved many important victories, including wins over South Africa and India in the 2007 World Cup; victories over West Indies and New Zealand in multiple ODI series; and a victory against England in a 2011 World Cup group match. However, the 2012 Asia Cup final appearance was Bangladesh's most remarkable accomplishment. They qualified for the title game after defeating India and Sri Lanka in the group stage, but they fell short of Pakistan by two runs. After coming so close to winning an Asia Cup competition but falling short, the entire country was heartbroken. The rise of Bangladesh's ODI team in 2015 and the present situation The year 2015 will always remain a memorable one for Bangladesh cricket fans. The team Tigers had some unbelievable success all through the years. Bangladesh became a very competitive team under Captain Mashrafe Mortaza’s leadership and head coach Chandika Hathurusingha’s mastermind tactics. Read India announce Asia Cup squad with Kohli back, sans Bumrah Bangladesh knocked England out of the 2015 World Cup by beating them by 15 runs at the Adelaide Oval and secured a place in the quarter-finals. Later in the year, they won a bilateral ODI series against Pakistan (3-0), India (2-1) and South Africa (2-1) respectively. In 2017, Bangladesh stunned the cricket world by reaching the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy in England. However, they were knocked out of the competition after losing to India by 9 wickets in the semi-final fixture. The following year, in 2018, Bangladesh won a bilateral series against West Indies (2-1) and reached the Asia Cup final. However, India's victory against Bangladesh by 3 wickets in the final dashed Bangladesh's hopes of taking home the trophy. Read Bangladesh end disastrous Zimbabwe tour with win Bangladesh made an excellent preparation for the 2019 World Cup by winning a tri-nation series in Ireland, their first in cricket history. The team Tigers' World Cup 2019 campaign started off with a 21-run victory over South Africa. They later couldn’t maintain the momentum and finished eighth in the points table with three victories over South Africa, West Indies and Afghanistan. However, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan had a magnificent tournament, breaking multiple records. He made 606 runs with an average of 86.57 and also picked up 11 wickets in 8 matches. The charismatic captain, Mashrafe Mortaza, later stepped down from the captaincy and veteran opener Tamim Iqbal took the role in March 2020. Since then, Tamim Iqbal has led Bangladesh quite well, equaling the record with Mashrafe Mortaza for most consecutive ODI series wins (5) as captain. Under Tamim Iqbal’s captaincy, Bangladesh registered their first-ever bilateral ODI series win in South Africa in March 2022. Read: Bangladesh end disastrous Zimbabwe tour with win 400 ODI Matches: Statistical Highlights of the Bangladesh National Men’s Cricket Team Bangladesh's statistics and records in the ODI format are now quite rich after 400 games. Let's explore some significant ODI statistics for Bangladesh. Notable Team records (as on August 10, 2022) Matches 400 Wins 144 Loss 249 Most ODIs Played Zimbabwe (81) Most ODI Wins Zimbabwe (51) Most ODI Losses Sri Lanka (40) Best Results in ODI World Cup Super Eights (2007) and Quarter-Finals (2015) Best Result in ICC Champions Trophy Semi-Finals (2017) Best Results in ODI Asia Cup Runner-Ups (2012 and 2018) Highest Totals 333/8 against Australia (2019) Lowest Totals 58 against West Indies (2011) and India (2014) Largest Victories (runs) 169 runs against Zimbabwe (2020) Smallest Victories (runs) 3 runs against New Zealand (2010) and Afghanistan (2018)    Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read BCB yet to name a captain for Asia Cup Notable Individual records (as on August 10, 2022) Most Matches Mushfiqur Rahim (236) Most Matches as Captain Mashrafe Mortaza (88) Most Wins as Captain Mashrafe Mortaza (50) Most Runs Tamim Iqbal (8074) Highest Score Litton Das (176) Most Hundreds Tamim Iqbal (14) Most Fifties Tamim Iqbal (55) Most Sixes Tamim Iqbal (101) Most Wickets Shakib Al Hasan (285) Best Bowling Figures Mashrafe Mortaza (6/26) Most Five Wickets Haul Mustafizur Rahman (5) Most Dismissals Mushfiqur Rahim (252) Most Catches Mahmudullah Riyad (73) Highest Partnership Tamim Iqbal and Litton Das (292)    Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read Asia Cup 2022: What could Bangladesh’s squad look like? Way Forward Reaching the 400-ODI games milestone is indeed a historic accomplishment for Bangladesh national men's cricket team. They have come a long way after some fruitless early years on the international platform. The Tigers' overall winning percentage has been decent given that they had to wait 12 years for their first ODI triumph. In addition, Bangladesh have always preferred one-day cricket because the majority of their memorable moments have come in ODIs. The Tigers' ODI side under Tamim Iqbal has made significant strides in the recent international series. The Bangladesh team's next major goal is to do something remarkable at the next ODI Cricket World Cup in 2023. Bangladesh have a decent chance of achieving their goals as the 13th ODI Cricket World Cup will be hosted in India. Read Bangladesh’s journey in Asia Cup Cricket Tournament So Far

Bangladesh beat Zimbabwe by 105 runs Wednesday in the third ODI at the Harare Sports Club to end their disastrous Zimbabwe tour with a consolation win. It was Bangladesh's first series defeat against Zimbabwe after 2013. The Tigers batted first in today's match and set a target of 257 for the hosts. In reply, Zimbabwe were all out for 151 in 32.2 overs. Sikandar Raza, who hit two centuries for Zimbabwe in the first two matches, made a golden duck in this match. He fell to Hasan Mahmud. Richard Ngarava, the No. 10 of Zimbabwe, scored the highest run for the home side. For Bangladesh, Mustafizu Rahman bagged four wickets for 17 runs in 5.2 overs. Edadot Hossain, who played his first ODI, and Taijul Islam scalped two wickets each. Earlier, Afif Hossain remained unbeaten on 85, and Anamul Haque Bijoy hit his second fifty in the series to power Bangladesh to 256-9. Read: Bangladesh bat first in 2nd ODI vs Zimbabwe Like the first two matches, Bangladesh managed a brisk start as Tamim Iqbal and Anamul added 41 runs in 8.3 overs. Tamim was run-out for 19 off 30 balls. After that, Bangladesh suffered a mini-collapse.  Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur Rahim fell quickly within 10th overs of the innings. Both made ducks. In the fourth-wicket stand, Anamul and Mahmudullah Riyad added 77 runs. But the unusually slow batting of Riyad put immense pressure on Bangladesh. He eventually fell for 39 off 69 balls. Afif stood firm like a rock at the other end of the wicket. But he did not get enough support from Mehidy Hasan Miraz who scored 24 balls to score 14 runs. For Zimbabwe, Brad Evans and Luke Jongwe scalped two wickets each. Ahead of the ODIs, Bangladesh played a three-match T20I series against the hosts and suffered a defeat 2-1.

Afif Hossain, unbeaten at 85, and Anamul Haque Bijoy, hitting his second fifty in the series, propelled Bangladesh to 256 for nine in the third and final ODI against Zimbabwe on Wednesday at the Harare Sports Club.  Zimbabwe won the first two matches of the series, and they are on the verge of registering a clean sweep over Bangladesh.  Bangladesh suffered their last clean sweep over Zimbabwe back in 2001.  The Tigers need to defend this total to avoid a whitewash against the hosts.  For the third time in the series, Bangladesh lost the toss and were inserted to bat first. Like the first two matches, Bangladesh managed a brisk start as Tamim Iqbal and Anamul Haque added 41 runs in 8.3 overs. Tamim going well until being trapped in a run-out for 19 off 30 balls.  After Tamim’s departure, Bangladesh suffered a mini-collapse with out-form batter Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mushfiqur Rahim fell quickly within the 10 overs of the innings. Both suffered a duck each.  Read: Bangladesh bat first in 3rd ODI vs Zimbabwe In the fourth-wicket stand, Anamul and Mahmudullah Riyad added 77 runs. But the unusually slow batting from Mahmudullah put immense pressure on Bangladesh. Mahmudullah eventually fell for 39 off 69 balls. Afif was firm at the other end of the wicket. But he did not get enough company from Mehidy Hasan Miraz who batted for 24 balls to score 14 runs.  Afif remained unbeaten for 85 off 81 balls with six fours and two sixes.  For Zimbabwe, Brad Evans and Luke Jongwe scalped two wickets each.  Bangladesh have three pacers in their arsenal along with Taijul Islam and Mehidy as the spinners to defend a total of 256. In the last two matches of this series, Bangladesh failed to defend 303 and 290.

Zimbabwe won the toss again, and for the third and final time in the ongoing series, they sent Bangladesh to bat first. Bangladesh have lost the first two matches of the series. Now the Tigers can only have a consolation win on Wednesday. In the first match, Bangladesh scored 303 and failed to defend it. In the second, they posted 290 and failed to defend it too. In both the matches, Sikandar Raza of Zimbabwe hit a ton and guided his team to two outstanding victories. Bangladesh are struggling to field their best XI as Liton Das is suffering from injuries. Mustafizur Rahman also missed a match before staging a comeback for Wednesday's game. The third match of the ODI series is the 400th ODI of Bangladesh. Coming into this landmark match, Bangladesh are eying a win -- the only happiness they can bring back from Zimbabwe. Bangladesh made two changes to the playing XI, overlooking Shoriful Islam and Taskin Ahmed to pave the way for Ebadot Hossain and Mustafiz. Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 2021: ODI Series PreviewRead: Sikandar, the king of Zimbabwe in this series, will lead them in the last match. Bangladesh (Playing XI): Tamim Iqbal (c), Anamul Haque, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Ebadot Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Mustafizur Rahman   Zimbabwe (Playing XI): Tadiwanashe Marumani, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Innocent Kaia, Wesley Madhevere, Sikandar Raza (c), Clive Madande (w), Tony Munyonga, Luke Jongwe, Brad Evans, Victor Nyauchi, Richard Ngarava

India announced the squad for the Asia Cup 2022 starting on August 27 in the UAE. Pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the squad for a back injury, but Virat Kohli is set to return following his brief break from international cricket. Harshal Patel has a rib injury and was also ruled out of the continental Twenty20 tournament, which is set to start on August 27 in the United Arab Emirates. India will meet archrival Pakistan in Dubai on Aug. 28. The Board of Control for Cricket in India said in a statement that Bumrah and Patel were undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. The absence of strike paceman Bumrah is a big setback for India. Vice-captain K.L. Rahul will return to action for the first time since the Indian Premier League in May. Rahul, who underwent surgery for a hernia, had been scheduled to play against the West Indies this month but was ruled out of the series after testing positive for COVID-19. Read:Asia Cup 2022: Who are favourites to lift the trophy? Kohli was rested after India’s tour of England ended in mid-July and has played just in four T20s and scored 81 runs since the Twenty20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates last year. He also had below-par run in the IPL last season, making 341 runs at a strike rate of 116. India’s selectors dropped Ishan Kishan, Kuldeep Yadav and Sanju Samson, who were part of the series against the West Indies. Fast bowlers Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan along with leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi and prolific hitter Deepak Hooda were retained. India, Pakistan and a qualifier will contest Group A in the Asia Cup. Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh are in Group B. UAE, Kuwait, Singapore and Hong Kong will compete in the qualifying tournament in Oman from Aug. 20, with the winner to join India and Pakistan in Group A. The first- and second-place teams from each group will qualify for a Super 4 series, which is a round-robin to determine the two teams to meet in the final on Sept. 11. Sri Lanka remains the official tournament host of the Asia Cup, despite the venue being shifted away from the island nation because of the economic crisis. India squad for Asia Cup 2022: Rohit Sharma (captain), K.L. Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan

The first unofficial Test between Bangladesh A and West Indies A ended in a draw in Gros Islet near the northern tip of Saint Lucia Sunday. Bangladesh batted first in the match and scored 167 in their first innings. Bangladesh A captain Mohammad Mithun (50) was the highest run scorer for his team. But the openers, Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Shadman Islam failed to impress with the bat. Read: Asia Cup 2022: Who are favourites to lift the trophy? West Indies A's Marquino Mindley bagged five wickets. In their first innings, West Indies scored 265-5 in 98 overs. Opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul scored the highest 49 and captain Joshua Da Silva 43. For Bangladesh, Khaled Ahmed took two wickets.             There was no play on day four due to inclement weather. Eventually, the match ended in a draw. The second four-day match will begin on August 10 at the same venue. After the two-match unofficial Test series, both the teams will lock horns in three ODIs, starting on August 16. The last two matches will be played on August 18 and 20.

The fifteenth edition of the Asia Cup cricket competition will begin on August 27 in the UAE. Six nations will compete in the main event. Five teams get a direct entry, while the remaining one team will be picked from a qualifier competition. The automatically qualified teams are India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. The forthcoming Asia Cup 2022 will be the ideal dress rehearsal for the competing teams since the Twenty20 World Cup 2022 is around the corner. Let’s have a look at who has the perfect balance to win the trophy. Asia Cup 2022 Format The fifteenth edition of Asia Cup cricket will be played in the Twenty20 format. The competition will be divided into two stages (group phase and super fours) before the all-important final. India, Pakistan, and the winner of the qualifier will play in Group A. On the other hand, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh will play in Group B. The top two teams in each group will advance to the Super Fours round. All the teams will play against each other in the Super Fours phase in order to finish in the top two in the points table and secure a place in the championship match. Read Bangladesh’s journey in Asia Cup Cricket Tournament So Far Sharjah Cricket Stadium and Dubai International Cricket Stadium in the UAE will host all the fixtures of the competition. The group stage will be held from August 28 to September 1, and the Super Fours phase will be held from September 3 to September 9. The final match of the Asia Cup 2022 will take place at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on September 11. Which teams have the best chance to win the 2022 Asia Cup? India is the most successful team in the competition as per Asia Cup Cricket history. The Indian national men’s cricket team has won the competition a record seven times in 13 appearances, including the maiden T20 format event in 2016. Sri Lanka are in second position with five trophies, while Pakistan have won two trophies. These three Asian giants will thrive for the trophy. Bangladesh have never won an Asian Cup cricket competition, having reached the final thrice in the previous four editions. However, Bangladesh's twenty20 team is currently going through a bad patch and the expectations will be low from them during the main event. On the other hand, Afghanistan are a very competitive T20 side and they have emerged as giant killers in recent times. The Afghan team will give a hard time to the other opponents. Read Asia Cup 2022: What could Bangladesh’s squad look like? Whoever qualifies from the UAE, Kuwait, Singapore, and Hong Kong for the main event by participating in the qualifier will not be in the race for the title. Let’s have a look at the chances of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh winning the 2022 Asia Cup. India India are the highest ranked T20I side in the world. India have had a great run of form since the T20 World Cup 2021 and, more importantly, they are in the game. The Indian Twenty20 International side has played 24 matches since the last World Cup event. They have lost only four matches and won six bilateral T20I series. India will be the team to beat in the upcoming Asian Cup cricket competition and they will be the hot favourites to lift the trophy for the eighth time. India’s Strengths India’s biggest strength is that they have the right balance and great alternatives in each position. Their top order is one of the best in the world, their middle-order has some magnificent power hitters and they also have some Twenty20 specialist bowlers. Read Asia Cup 2022 Schedule: Groups, full fixtures, venues India’s Weaknesses The Indian team doesn't appear to have any significant flaws that should cause worry. However, those who will be in the playing XI could be under pressure to deliver as India have strong backups in the squad. Virat Kohli’s recent form on the international stage could be another source of concern for Team India, and surprisingly, he may not be among the five most important players for the side during the tournament. Five key players to watch:  Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal  Pakistan Pakistan are in third position in the ICC’s Twenty20 rankings. Like India, Pakistan’s recent T20 form has been quite impressive. They have lost only one match in their previous seven Twenty20 Internationals. Pakistan will pose a real title challenge to India during the forthcoming Asia Cup competition. They are the first team to announce their squad and will be strong favourites to win the competition. Read Sri Lanka to host Asia Cup in UAE, ACC confirms Pakistan’s Strengths The Pakistan T20 side is currently one of the best in the world. Their captain, Babar Azam, is ranked first in the rankings, and his opening partner, Mohammad Rizwan, is in third position. So, they have arguably the best opening pair in the world for the shortest format of the game. Pakistan also has a great variety in their bowling lineup and this unit can destroy any batting order in the world. Pakistan’s Weaknesses One of the major areas of concern for Pakistan is that they have a less-experienced middle-order. The experienced Shoaib Malik was overlooked, and many pundits believe excluding him was a mistake. Therefore, the middle order could be exposed if the openers fail to give the team a solid start. The selectors also didn’t pick Imad Wasim and Hasan Ali, both of whom are highly rated T20 players. Five key players to watch:  Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan and Fakhar Zaman. Read Asia Cup 2022 moved from Sri Lanka to UAE: Ganguly Sri Lanka Sri Lanka are the eighth-ranked side by the ICC. Their recent performances in the format haven’t been up to the mark. Sri Lanka have only won two out of eleven matches this year, and both victories came against Australia. Sri Lanka’s overall record in the Asia Cup is really good and that could encourage them to do well in the upcoming event. Sri Lanka’s Strengths The Lankan side has some talented young players who have power hitting ability. Besides, they have effective spinners like Wanindu Hasaranga and Praveen Jayawickrama who can pose a threat in the middle overs. Sri Lanka’s Weaknesses Sri Lanka's players are talented, but they don’t have enough experience to win big tournaments like the Asia Cup. Finding a right balance against the opposition like India and Pakistan would be a major concern for the Lankan team. Read Aussie plays in cricket final despite positive COVID-19 test Five key players to watch:  Danushka Gunathilaka, Dasun Shanaka, Kusal Mendis, Praveen Jayawickrama and Wanindu Hasaranga Afghanistan Afghanistan are sitting ninth in the rankings, and they are an exciting team to watch. The Afghan national side is having a good run at the moment in the T20 format. However, they have played weaker opponents in recent series. Afghanistan’s main target in the Asia Cup would be to qualify for the Super Fours. Afghanistan’s Strengths    The Afghanistan T20 side’s main strength is their bowling. They have arguably the best limited-overs spinner, Rashid Khan, and the world’s number one T20 all-rounder, Mohammad Nabi. Besides, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Fazalhaq Farooqi are two promising T20 bowlers who have the ability to destroy the opposition batting line-up. They have some quality shortest format batters as well. Read Bangladesh post 290 as Mahmudullah hits unbeaten 80 Afghanistan’s Weaknesses Afghanistan always performs whenever they face a less strong opponent. However, they don’t have a great record against big opposition. In order to be a top-ranked T20 side, Afghanistan have to start winning against big opposition. Five key players to watch:  Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Najibullah Zadran Bangladesh Bangladesh are currently ranked 10th by the ICC, the lowest among India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. They haven’t won a T20I series since September last year. More importantly, the Tigers recently lost a bilateral series against Zimbabwe, which indicates they are currently in a serious bad run of form in the shortest format of the game. Bangladesh’s main target would be to first qualify for the Super Fours round. Read Bangladesh bat first in 2nd ODI vs Zimbabwe Bangladesh’s Strengths Bangladesh’s bowling department is relatively in good shape at the moment. They have three very good pacers and a couple of quality left-arm spinners. Bangladesh’s Weaknesses The Bangladesh team is in bad shape at the moment. They don’t have a quality opening pair or power hitters for the death overs. Finding the right balance for the playing XI would be a major concern for the Tigers' team management. Five key players to watch:  Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mustafizur Rahman, and Afif Hossain. Read India’s women reach Commonwealth Games cricket final Verdict India are clearly the overwhelming favourite to win the Asia Cup 2022. They have a strong team with the ideal mix in each department. The Pakistan Twenty20 national team is currently doing well in the shortest format of the game. They are the only other team in the tournament that can compete with India. Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Sri Lanka all have an outside chance, but it would be a surprise if any of these three countries triumphed.

Star batter Tahlia McGrath tested positive for COVID-19 but was still allowed to help Australia win the first Commonwealth Games gold medal awarded in women’s cricket, beating India by nine runs in Sunday's final at Edgbaston. Top-ranked Australia was pushed to the brink by India, which was led superbly by captain Harmanpreet Kaur, before claiming seven wickets in the last five overs for victory. There was drama midway through Australia’s innings when the team confirmed McGrath had tested positive for the coronavirus before the game. Had the match been played in Australia, McGrath could not have played. But the Commonwealth Games rules for participation are more relaxed to match the regulations around coronovirus protocols in host nation England. McGrath reported mild symptoms to team management before the final and returned a positive test but received clearance to play from the International Cricket Council and also the Commonwealth Games Foundation. Australian team officials said medical staff “implemented a range of comprehensive protocols” during and after the match to minimize the risk of transmission. That led to an unusual moment early in India’s innings as it chased Australia’s total of 161-8. After taking an important catch in the third over, McGrath had to wave her teammates away from her as they were gathering to celebrate the moment. She had to isolate after the match as her teammates celebrated the victory. With Harmanpreet at the crease, India appeared to have a strong chance of reaching Australia’s target. But when she was out for 65, the momentum swung back to Australia and India was bowled out for 152. Australian fast bowler Megan Schutt said the team knew about McGrath’s positive test and were all happy to play alongside her. “She feels absolutely fine, so I think the positive result was an absolute shock to her," Schutt said. “Probably the strangest part of all was not being able to celebrate with her.” Australia became the first nation to reach 1,000 all-time gold medals at the Commonwealth Games — included 66 golds so in Birmingham — when the top-ranked Diamonds defeated Jamaica 55-51 in a tough netball final, avenging a loss in the group stage. Read:Asia Cup 2022: What could Bangladesh’s squad look like? With one day of competition remaining, Australia had a decisive lead in the medal standings over second place England, which had 55 golds and 166 medals overall. Also Sunday, and only a week after the England women's soccer team won the European Championship, its women’s field hockey team won a Commonwealth Games title for the first time. It was a case of seventh time lucky for England, which beat four-time champion Australia 2-1 in the final. In the six previous editions where women’s hockey has been played in the Games, England had claimed either silver or bronze medals. The crowd was already singing “Hockey’s coming home,” changing a popular chant usually associated with soccer, when Australia scored its only goal with 19 seconds remaining. Australian rider Georgia Baker won the women’s road race, giving her three gold medals for the Games, and New Zealander Aaron Gate claimed a fourth cycling gold medal of the Games, displaying his remarkable versatility to win the men’s road race. The 31-year-old Gate also won the individual and team pursuits, as well as the points race, and he is the first New Zealand cyclist to claim four gold medals in a Games. “That’s a special thing, making history," he said. “It gives a challenge to other Kiwis to go for that record in years to come.” Australia’s double world champion javelin thrower Kelsey-Lee Barber again played the waiting game to perfection. After adding the 2022 world championship title in Oregon last month to her success in Doha in 2019, Barber was a hot favorite to claim her first Commonwealth gold medal. But on the eve of the opening ceremony on July 28, she tested positive for COVID-19, putting her into isolation and casting doubt over her participation. She received clearance to compete on Thursday. “Mentally, I coped," she said. “I wasn’t going to let it affect my performance today.” She saved her best throw for last. Trailing her teammate Mackenzie Little, who threw a personal best of 64.27 meters, Barber responded with an effort of 64.43 meters to clinch the gold medal on her sixth and last attempt. England won gold when the 4x100-meter men’s relay team sprinted to success over Trinidad and Tobago and Nigeria. Zharnel Hughes backed up from his second in the 200-meters final on Saturday night to run a strong second leg when seizing the advantage for England, which clocked 38.35 seconds. Nigeria claimed the women’s 4x100 relay gold medal, with Jamaican champion Elaine Thompson-Herah finishing strongly as the anchor to clinch bronze for her nation. Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem threw a meet record 90.18 meters to win the javelin gold medal, relegating two-time world champion Anderson Peters of Grenada to silver with a mark of 88.64 and Kenya's Julius Yego into bronze. Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra of India missed the competition because of an injury sustained while earning a silver at the world championships last month. Wins in the women's 4x400 relay, after England was disqualified for a lane infringement, and in the women's beach volleyball final helped lift Canada to 26 gold medals and 91 overall in third place in the standings after 11 days of competition. The Canadians were seven gold medals ahead of New Zealand and eight clear of fifth-place India.

Sikandar Raza hit another century in the second match of the three-ODI series against Bangladesh Sunday and guided Zimbabwe to a historic series win in Harare. Zimbabwe's last ODI series win against Bangladesh came in 2013. After a long wait of nine years, they again beat Bangladesh in an ODI series with one match to play. The visitors batted first in today's match after losing the toss for the second time. They finished on 290-9, riding on an unbeaten 80 of Mahmudullah Riyad. Read: Bangladesh’s journey in Asia Cup Cricket Tournament So Far Tamim Iqbal and Anamul Haque made a brisk start scoring 71 in 10.6 overs. Tamim perished for 50 off 45 balls. The next three batters – Aamul (20), Najmul Hossain Shanto (38) and Mushfiqur Rahim (25) failed to convert their promising starts into substantial scores. For Zimbabwe, Sikandar Raza bagged three wickets conceding 56 in his 10 overs while Wesley Madhevere took two conceding 40 in nine overs. Chasing 290, the hosts lost three wickets for 27 runs. Two of their first three wickets were taken by pacer Hasan Mahmud who played his first match in this series. In the fourth wicket stand, Zimbabwe added 22 runs. Taijul Islam took the fourth wicket. The spinner also played his first match in this series. In the fifth wicket stand, shared by Sikandar Raza and Zimbabwean captain Regis Chkabva, the home side added 201 runs – Zimbabwe's first 200-run stand against Bangladesh in ODIs and overall third 200-run stand in ODIs against any opponent. Read: Asia Cup 2022: What could Bangladesh’s squad look like? Raza and Chakabva hit a 100 each. Raza had hit a ton in the first match of the series as well which helped Zimbabwe to register their maiden win against Bangladesh in nine years. Today, the hosts chased down the target of 291 with five wickets in hand. For Bangladesh, Hasan Mahmud and Mehidy Hasan Miraz bagged two wickets each. "The series win is a massive achievement," Chakabva said after the match. "We have been playing some good cricket. We were itching to play good cricket." "We've been trying to play positive cricket. The coaches asked me to take it deep and I batted positively. We have to play good cricket again, we'll be looking to win in the last match as well." "The difference is four centuries for them and zero for us (in the series)," Bangladesh captain Tamim said after the match. "We put up a decent total. But all credit to Zimbabwe, they were the better team this series." The last and final ODI of this series will take place on August 10 at the same venue. Before the ODI series, the hosts won the T20I series 2-1.

The Bangladesh national cricket team started their journey on the international stage in the 1986 Asia Cup cricket competition against Pakistan, which they lost by 7 wickets. Team Tigers have participated in thirteen Asian Cup tournaments so far, which includes twelve ODI format events and one Twenty20 format event. Bangladesh had struggled in the early events of the competition. However, their recent performances in the tournament have been impressive. Bangladesh’s performances in the Asia Cup tournament is discussed in this article. Bangladesh’s performances in the Asia Cup Cricket events (1986- 2018) The Bangladesh team was considered minnows when they made their first appearance in the 1986 edition. They have played in all editions of the tournament since then and hosted a record five Asia Cup cricket competitions, including three in a row in 2012, 2014 and 2016. Here are Bangladesh's performances in the Asia Cup Cricket tournaments. 1986 Asia Cup Bangladesh finished third in the group stage in the second edition of the Asia Cup. They lost both of their group stage fixtures by 7 wickets against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, respectively. Read Asia Cup 2022: What could Bangladesh’s squad look like? 1988 Asia Cup Bangladesh first hosted an Asia Cup competition in the year 1988. They faced India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka in the group stage and lost all the matches. 1990/1991 Asia Cup Bangladesh’s winless run in the Asia Cup continued in the fourth edition of the tournament. They lost both of their group stage fixtures against India and Sri Lanka, respectively. 1995 Asia Cup In the 1995 Asia Cup in the UAE, Bangladesh played all three Asian giants: India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. They once again finished the competition winless by losing all three fixtures. Read Asia Cup 2022 Schedule: Groups, full fixtures, venues 1997 Asia Cup Bangladesh remained winless in the 1997 Asia Cup tournament in Sri Lanka. 2000 Asia Cup The BCB organized the seventh edition of the Asia Cup in Dhaka. They were defeated by Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and India in the group stage and knocked out of the tournament. 2004 Asia Cup Four years later, Sri Lanka hosted the eighth edition of the competition. Bangladesh finally earned their first victory in the competition as they beat Hong Kong by 116 runs in a group stage fixture. However, they lost all of their Super Fours matches and were knocked out of the tournament. Read Sri Lanka to host Asia Cup in UAE, ACC confirms 2008 Asia Cup Bangladesh found their second victory in the Asia Cup in the ninth edition when they overcame the UAE by 96 runs in a group stage match. However, they couldn’t win a single match in the Super Fours. 2010 Asia Cup The tenth edition of the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka wasn’t a fruitful one for Bangladesh. They lost all of their fixtures against India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. 2012 Asia Cup The 2012 Asia Cup was hosted in Bangladesh. The hosts surprised everyone by beating India and Sri Lanka in the group stage and qualifying for the finals. There was a real opportunity for the Tigers to clinch their maiden Asia Cup trophy. Pakistan broke millions of Bangladesh cricket fans' hearts by winning the final by only 2 runs. Read Asia Cup 2022 moved from Sri Lanka to UAE: Ganguly 2014 Asia Cup Bangladesh’s most disastrous Asia Cup was the 2014 edition at home. They lost all of their four group stage matches against India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. 2016 Asia Cup The BCB organized the 2016 edition of the Asia Cup. For the first time, the Asia Cup was played in a T20 format. Bangladesh reached the inaugural Twenty20 format Asia Cup final by beating the UAE, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan in the group phase. However, Bangladesh once again lost in the final, and this time India overcame them by 8 wickets. 2018 Asia Cup The 14th edition of the Asia Cup took place in the UAE. It was a one-day format tournament. Bangladesh reached the Super Fours by beating Sri Lanka by 91 runs. The Tigers defeated Afghanistan and Pakistan in the next round and earned a place in the championship match. However, Bangladesh fell against India in the final once more, ending their hopes of winning an Asia Cup. Read BCB yet to name a captain for Asia Cup Bottom Line Bangladesh's journey in the Asia Cup Cricket Tournament so far was eventful. The country came so close to winning the Asia Cup Cricket at least three times, but they were unable to do it. With the 2022 Asia Cup tournament just around the corner, Team Tigers will have another opportunity to win an Asian Cup competition. However, the Bangladesh T20 national team will have a difficult time making it to the Super Four stage given their recent performances.