Prior to the commencement of the home series against a strong India side, women’s cricket in Bangladesh was still looking for a huge break to demonstrate what the squad was capable of doing.
The upcoming home series against India presented the perfect opportunity.
Nigar Sultana Joty and company’s confidence began to build when the team won the third T20I by four wickets, despite the fact that they had already lost the T20I series with a game in hand. Despite this, the squad responded magnificently and shown tremendous character in order to win the third T20I.
Marufa Akter, an exciting young bowler, was in her full force in the inaugural one-day international, scooping up four wickets to assist the Tigresses earn their first victory over India in the fifty-over format by 40 runs in a weather-curtailed match that was decided by the DLS system. The match was halted because of the rain.
The victory was a tremendous morale boost for the ladies in red and green, and after suffering a thorough loss in the second one-day international (ODI), the home team shown great spirit in the third match, which was also the series-deciding match.
Fargana Hoque Pinky etched her name into the annals of women’s cricket history by scoring the first one-day international (ODI) century for Bangladesh, therefore assisting the home team in posting their second best total of 225 for four. And then, just when it seemed as if India was about to cruise to an easy victory, the Tigresses staged yet another comeback to tie the game and split the series.
According to Joty, the series has allowed the women’s cricket team in Bangladesh to advance in a manner that is respectable. The captain said that the players were able to seize the limelight, which is significant since it had never been directed in their direction previously.
“I am not completely content because I believe that we could have performed more admirably. However, it was encouraging to see how the members of the board supported us and spoke great things about the situation. After the game, Joty expressed his satisfaction to the media by saying, “I am happy to see how the fans and media came in and supported and promoted us, so overall I am happy.”
“I have always wished for our squad to make one step ahead, and I believe that after this series, we have made a fair stride forward in that direction. With the exception of one or two players, there were many others who were unfamiliar with us. At least those individuals are aware of the identities of Nahida, Pinky, and Marufa now. She went on to say that she believed that this was a successful endeavor since “the people of Bangladesh now know who plays in the women’s team.”
Even though there were a lot of things for the Tigresses to take away from both the T20I and the ODI series that were encouraging, the 25-year-old was not completely pleased and wants there to be even more progress made in the days to come.
“Without a doubt, I am not satisfied because we were unable to win the series; instead, we were only able to tie it.” But I believe that we were able to correct a number of the errors we made the previous day, and today went quite well. “We could have done better in the second game, but yes, there are many areas for us to learn, and if we can rectify those mistakes, I think we will be able to play better cricket in the coming days,” said Joty. “There are many areas for us to learn, and if we can rectify those mistakes, I think we will be able to play better cricket in the coming days.”
Shafiul Alam Chowdhury Nadel, who is the chairman of the women’s wing of the BCB, said that the success was a result of the support that was offered by the board.
“We are very happy as we have seen Pinky score a maiden hundred for Bangladesh in ODI format, and I think it’s a stepping stone for women’s cricket in the country. We are very happy as we have seen Pinky scoring a maiden hundred for Bangladesh.” According to Nadel, “the board president has provided all of the necessary support, and we have increased the salary and match fees, which demonstrates that the board is always behind the players and is continuing to provide facilities.”