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Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto said his team can take plenty of positives from their Test series in Australia despite suffering a heavy defeat in Mackay.He praised the team’s fighting spirit and the fast bowlers, while stressing that more regular opportunities to play in Australian conditions would help Bangladesh improve.
A historic series with valuable lessons
Bangladesh had already created history by beating Australia in the first Test at Darwin, securing their first-ever Test victory on Australian soil and winning their first Test in the country in 23 years. Australia responded strongly in Mackay, however, winning by an innings and 51 runs to level the two-match series 1-1.Speaking after the match, Shanto, as quoted by news agency ANI, said, “I think it is a very proud moment as a team and we showed our character and we were disciplined, as you mentioned, that the first Test and we need to be consistent and I believe if we are able to get more chances in similar kind of condition here, it will help us and that is what we want, not waiting 23 years of came here and play two Test matches. It is not easy. So if we have that able to chance to play every single year, it will help us to improve our game.”He also admitted that Australia showed why they remain a difficult side to beat, saying, “I think we all know that, how good they are. So yeah, they played, they showed their character and as a Bangladesh Test team, we did not play our best match.”According to Shanto, the conditions in Mackay were tougher than Darwin, with more movement in the air and extra bounce. “So it is challenging for us. But as a team, if we want to go forward, we need to adjust to this condition, and I hope this experience will help going forward,” he added.
Starc leads Australia’s response
Australia’s fast bowlers dominated the match. Mitchell Starc took six wickets for 12 runs as Bangladesh were bowled out for just 64 in their first innings, with Pat Cummins taking three wickets. Bangladesh fought back through Shoriful Islam, who claimed 7/48 as Australia were dismissed for 210, giving them a 146-run lead.Bangladesh struggled again in the second innings and were bowled out for 95. Starc took four more wickets, while Cummins and Nathan Lyon claimed three each. Shanto top-scored with 31, while Mushfiqur Rahim remained unbeaten on 29.Despite the defeat, Shanto was pleased with Bangladesh’s pace attack. “It was quite difficult for all the batters. If you look at their batting also, they also struggled and the way Shoriful, Taskin and Hasan bowled, really happy to see them and it was quite a difficult wicket to bat, to be very honest,” he signed off.Bangladesh can therefore return home with several positives, including their historic Darwin win, Tanzid Hasan’s century and the impressive performances of their fast bowlers.
