|| CF Correspondent ||

The Bangladesh Women’s Cricket Team made several milestones in individual and team’s perspective, making the 2018 a breakthrough year for them. The likes of Salma Khatun and Jahanara Alam eventually managed to carve their own niche as they have come out of the shadow of their male compatriots this year.

To make the matter sweeter, Rumana became the first Bangladesh player to have been selected in the ICC T20 squad of this year. The right-arm leg-spinner was the second most successful T20I bowler in the 2018 calendar year with 30 wickets in 24 matches, including four wickets in four matches in the ICC Women’s World T20 2018.

Tigress however made their presence felt in the international arena despite beginning the year with a winless tour to South Africa and ending in a disappointing World Twenty20 campaign.

It was due to their effort in the Asia Cup in Malaysia where they ended up as the eventual winner, forcing others to take notice. Clinching the trophy can certainly be seen as a new dawn for them.

The magnitude of clinching the Asia Cup was even more meaningful as their men’s counterpart failed to win an international trophy since 1998.

They followed the Asia Cup victory by becoming the undefeated champions in the ICC World T20 qualifier tournament in Netherlands.

There was hiccups in between, which doesn’t permit them to claim a perfect year but no doubt, the year surely be remembered as one of the most memorable year for them.

The beginning of the year was however a stark contrast to what transpired eventually throughout the year. In May, Women’s season began with a crushing loss to South Africa in five-match ODIs and three-match T20 series.

It was even more morale shattering as they failed to put up any real fight against the hosts in the entire tour and considering the result they achieved in SA they hardly did not had a chance to go far in Asia Cup, an assignment that followed after the tour in Malaysia in June.

It seemed they were expected to follow a similar fate in the Asia Cup as they lost the first match against Sri Lanka but since then what happened was a pleasing turnaround.

They made history by reaching final at the expense of Pakistan and thereafter completed a fairytale journey by clinching the trophy.

The final had all the elements of uncertainty when they pitted against six-time champions India. It came down to the final over despite restricting India for 112-9 on the back of some tight bowling, complemented by energetic fielding.

India managed to take the game to the wire as Bangladesh needed nine runs in the last over and was derailed again after picking up six runs from the first three balls by losing two wickets in consecutive deliveries.