Bangladesh at World Cups – the perennial underdogs
The Bangladeshi team will complete a full circle with this World Cup in England. 20 years ago, they played their maiden World Cup in this country and now they return better and stronger. This may well turn out to be last mega event for their golden generation of players, so expect the Tigers to be at their ferocious best.
Team record:
Played – 32, Won – 11, Lost – 20, No result – 1
Notable performances:
Super Eight – 2007, Quarterfinalists – 2015
Most runs: Shakib Al Hasan (540 runs in 21 matches)
Most wickets: Shakib Al Hasan (23 wickets in 21 matches)
History:
So far, Bangladesh has played in five World Cups. That is one less than the career tally of Sachin Tendulkar and Javed Miandad. The Asian nation played their first World Cup in 1999. Prior to the tournament in England, they had only one win from 30 ODIs, which was recorded against Kenya. Bangladesh was one of the three associate nations to play in the 1999 tournament alongside Kenya and Scotland.
Making a mark
Bangladesh was expected to struggle in the English conditions but the feisty team under Aminul Islam surprised everyone with their performance. After losing to New Zealand and West Indies, Bangladesh celebrated their first World Cup win. Riding on Minhajul Abedin’s 68, they defeated the European nation by 22 runs.
The real shock of the tournament came a week later. In the last match of the group stage, Bangladesh handed a 62-run defeat to the eventual runner up, Pakistan. The victory is one of the biggest upsets in the World Cup and it also helped Bangladesh gain the Test status.
The worst outing
After their performance in the inaugural World Cup, Bangladesh was expected to perform better in the 2003 tournament which was held in Africa. However, this turned out to be the worst outing for Khaled Mashud’s men. They were defeated by Canada in the opening encounter. This was followed by defeats against the other four teams in the group. Only points Bangladesh received in the tournament were from the washed-out game versus West Indies.
Mahmudullah Riyadh remains Bangladesh’s only centurion in the World Cups.
Giant-killers
The first major impact that Bangladesh made on the World Cup was in 2007. They humbled India in the group stage which remains their greatest win of the tournament. After stopping India for only 191, Bangladeshi batsmen showed great composure in chasing the target down with five wickets in hand. The win helped the green team progress into the Super Eight stage. They lost five of their six matches and crashed out of the competition.
Thrashed at home
By 2011, Bangladesh was a capable side. With the World Cup being played on the home soil, they were expected to be a threat for the major nations. However, Bangladesh’s journey in the tournament ended in the group stage with three wins and three losses. Although they defeated England, the heavy losses against West Indies and South Africa took them down.
The Quarter step
Four years later, Bangladesh came up with a solid performance in Australia and New Zealand. They celebrated three wins in the group stages, one of which was against Scotland, where the Tigers chased down 318 runs. Facing England, Mahmudullah Riyadh became the first centurion for Bangladesh in World Cups with his 103. Later, he scored another hundred versus New Zealand. He remains the only centurion for Bangladesh in World Cups. The win against England helped Bangladesh secure the quarterfinal berth. They were defeated comprehensively by India.
