Wi start on the wrong foot vs Bangladesh

-Timothy Thompson

Fans around the region rose eagerly in the early hours of the morning to witness the start of the West Indies tour of Bangladesh. Maybe a fresh start, maybe a turn in the tide. But no, the struggle continued. Once again, the West Indies failed to capitalise on a seemingly weaker opposition from a position of strength.

Winning the toss, the visitors opted to bowl first, a decision that seemed ideal given their balanced attack featuring Motie, Piere, Seales, Greaves, and Chase. On paper, it was a strong call as Dhaka’s pitch has traditionally been a bowler’s dream, offering assistance to both seamers and spinners.

The plan initially worked. The West Indian bowlers produced a disciplined display, restricting Bangladesh to under 210 runs. The hosts, at one stage, looked destined to fall below 200, but some late blows from the tail lifted them to a respectable 207 all out, just shy of the average first-innings score at the Shere Bangla Stadium.

That small boost gave Bangladesh some momentum heading into their bowling innings, and it showed. The first two overs were maidens, setting the tone early. Yet, openers Alick Athanaze and Brandon King began to rebuild confidently, forming a solid 51-run opening stand that gave Windies fans hope. With 40 overs left and wickets in hand, victory seemed within reach.

Then came the collapse. Athanaze’s dismissal opened the floodgates. Carty, recently praised for his consistency in the one-day format, struggled badly, failing to rotate strike or adapt to the Dhaka surface before departing cheaply.

The slide continued as Rishad Hossain delivered a career-defining performance. After frustrating the West Indies with a quick cameo at the end of Bangladesh’s innings, he returned with the ball to dismantle the Windies lineup, taking a career-best 6 for 35 in nine overs. From there, it was like watching a lotto draw: 3, 6, 7, 1, wickets tumbling in rapid succession. Only Brandon King showed some resistance, but it wasn’t enough. The West Indies were bundled out for just 133, slumping to a crushing 74-run defeat.

It was an awful and confidence-shattering loss that pushes the West Indies further onto the back burner, with World Cup qualification hopes once again in jeopardy. Can the men in maroon overcome the tricky Bangladeshi conditions to revive their campaign, or will fans have to wait yet another cycle to glimpse what West Indies cricket used to be?