Ian Baker - Bangladesh deserve their day in the sun
15 Jul 2010 - 13:13:30
Bangladesh's first ever victory over Andrew Strauss' side in any form of cricket last Saturday should have left all Englishmen down in the dumps. But it did not.
Instead many - including myself - were simply delighted to see the world's lowest ranked Test playing nation finally have their day in the sun.
Despite their poverty, the people of Bangladesh are probably the happiest and friendliest I have ever encountered. And this is reflected in the happy-go-lucky nature of their cricketers.
Tamim Iqbal aside they lack genuine match winners but their enthusiasm cannot be faulted.
Mashrafe Mortaza captained the side in the recent one-dayers at the grand old age of 26, making him the second oldest player.
The Tigers certainly have youth on their side and with the amount of interest in the sport at Dhaka, Chittagong and the rest of the country - along with next year's World Cup there is plenty of encouragement for the future.
It is certainly unfair to describe an England defeat to Bangladesh as embarrassing.
Nevertheless, that defeat at Bristol was a bit of a wake-up call for Strauss' men. They have really produced great strides over the last few months in the shorter forms of the game but they simply cannot afford to get complacent.
It comes as a reminder that all teams in world cricket need to be at their best if they are to get victories against any other international side.
Bangladesh bore the brunt of England’s frustrations at Edgbaston on Monday and it was an impressively professional performance from Strauss' men.
It is perhaps disappointing that England fans will have to wait until the end of the month to see their side in action again.
The World Cup, the British Grand Prix and Wimbledon are out the way and this should be a time for lots of cricket given a shortage of other sport - The Open and some meaningless football friendlies aside.
Instead Pakistan v Australia will be showcased and England's Tests and one-dayers with Pakistan will take place when the football season starts up again.
It appears as if cricket's organisers could well be getting just as complacent as England's cricket team.
