On this day: 17-year old Mohammad Ashraful creates history
Bangladesh were up against Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the Asian Test Championship in 2001-2002 which was a tournament intended to give more exposure to the Tigers who received the official Test status in November 2000. Bangladesh’s inexperience was evident in the first game when they suffered a heavy defeat against a ruthless Pakistan. Not much was expected of them in the second game against Sri Lanka and on expected lines, Bangladesh folded for a paltry 90 in the first innings before Sri Lanka went on a rampage and piled up a humongous total of 555.
Bangladesh had to bat for more than 2 days to save the game. Although that possibility was unlikely, fans hoped for a more spirited fight from the Tigers. They got off to a good start, but soon found themselves at 81-4 and everyone felt the end was near. That is when a young Mohammad Ashraful walked out to the middle with the odds stacked against him.
Ashraful steps up to the plate
Ashraful had made his ODI debut a few months prior in April and was being touted as the next big thing in Bangladesh cricket. He had a solid technique, sound temperament and a dash of aggressiveness not seen earlier in Bangladesh cricketers. At 81-4, he could have surrendered and nobody would have pointed fingers at him as he was on debut. Instead, Ashraful decided to re-write history books.
He was up against the dreaded duo of Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan. While he seemed a bit edgy early on against Vaas, he played well once he settled down. But it was against the magician Murali that he was at his best. He used his feet well and played him with relative ease.
Ashraful stitched together a 126-run partnership with Aminul Islam before the latter was eventually dismissed with the score reading 207. But Ashraful carried on and fittingly brought up his maiden ton off just 169 balls with a boundary off Vaas. He was eventually dismissed on 114 and Bangladesh lost by an innings and 137 runs, but not before rattling the mighty Sri Lankans and announcing to the world that a new star had arrived. On 8th September 2001, Mohammad Ashraful, on his Test debut, just 17 years and 61 days old, stroked his way to a memorable century against Sri Lanka and became the youngest centurion in the history of Test cricket.
Ashraful went on to become one of Bangladesh’s most successful players and even led them a few years later. His career perhaps should have been more illustrious with the talent he possessed. But irrespective of how all of it eventually panned out, the day, 8th September 2001, is still an inspiration to all the young boys and girls back in Bangladesh.
