For four consecutive days, Bangladesh had a remarkable run in Test cricket. Dominating mighty Australia on their home soil in such a manner is a dream for any team, and Bangladesh turned that dream into reality. The ninth-ranked team achieved an incredible victory against the top-ranked Aussies.
Twenty-three years ago, Bangladesh had helplessly surrendered in Darwin and Cairns. After more than two decades, they toured Australia for only the second time. In this match, merely putting up a fight would have met expectations! However, on the very first day, August 13, the pacers’ dominance laid the foundation for an unforgettable victory.
For over two sessions, Bangladesh’s bowlers unexpectedly maintained their dominance. Australia was all out before reaching two hundred runs! It seemed unbelievable. It was, of course, expected that the formidable bowling lineup of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood would similarly assert dominance over Bangladeshi batters. But that was not the case; Bangladesh continued to dominate with the bat as well. Tanzid Hasan Tamim scored a historic century, while Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mehedi Hasan Miraz contributed half-centuries, building a strong foundation for a large total.
With the impeccable batting of these three batsmen and significant contributions from the tail-enders, Bangladesh secured a substantial lead of 228 runs. They had never achieved such a large first-innings lead overseas before. Australia’s batsmen came out to bat in the second innings under pressure. Once again, Hasan throttled them with a double strike.
In the first innings, Steve Smith, and in the second innings, Cameron Green offered some resistance against Bangladesh’s sharp bowlers. Green’s maiden century on home soil gave the Aussies a lead. However, Miraz displayed his spinning magic with the ball, preventing the lead from becoming substantial and keeping Bangladesh’s target within reach.
First-innings centurion Tanzid got out for a duck this time. Subsequently, Shadman Islam and Mominul Haque completed the remaining formalities of the victory. The memory of bowling Bangladesh out for just 54 runs in the warm-up match did nothing to boost the Aussies’ confidence. Bangladesh effortlessly chased down the target of 57 runs, inscribing their name in the pages of history.