The history of cricket in Bangladesh predates the foundation of the Bangladeshi state in 1971 by nearly two centuries. Cricket was introduced to Bengal by the British in the eighteenth century but its growth in East Bengal was slow. Following Partition and the creation of East Pakistan, both first-class and Test cricket were played there during the 1950s and 1960s. Although cricket continued to be popular after independence, especially in Dhaka, the country lost first-class status and had to establish itself in international competition as an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC).
After winning the 1997 ICC Trophy and making a good showing at the 1999 Cricket World Cup, Bangladesh created its National Cricket League (NCL) in 1999–2000 to prepare the way for full membership of the ICC. This was granted in 2000 and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was formally established. In November 2000, the Bangladesh national team played its inaugural Test match against India at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.
Bengal Cricket was first introduced into Bengal by the British East India Company in the eighteenth century and the first cricket matches recorded were in Calcutta in 1792, but matches were possibly played more than a decade earlier and the sport quickly achieved popularity in western Bengal and neighbouring Bihar. In eastern Bengal, the area which is now Bangladesh, cricket developed very slowly as the area failed to attract large numbers of European settlers until the second half of the nineteenth century. The problems were the region's predominantly rural character and its lack of infrastructure given that it had numerous rivers and travel was extremely difficult. The confluence of the Ganges and the Brahmaputra is in central Bangladesh and the coastal area consists of the Sundarbans mangrove forest and the Ganges Delta. The British saw it as a remote region with few economic incentives. Improvement was gradual and it was not until the 1860s and 1870s that the British built the new roads that facilitated communication. Work was done to improve water supplies, with a consequent boost to public health, and Europeans began to settle in Dhaka with cricket soon becoming one of their favourite recreational activities, as had happened elsewhere in India. In 1876, a European XI met and defeated a Native XVIII in Dhaka.Roy Morgan, Encyclopaedia of World Cricket, SportsBooks Limited (2007), p.31.
A team representative of Bengal played against G. F. Vernon's XI, the first English team to visit the Indian sub-continent, in 1889–90.Bengal v Vernon's XI, 1889–90 In January 1923, Bengal took part in the Nagpur Provincial Tournament with Bombay and a Central Provinces XI.Nagpur Provincial Tournament itinerary, 1923 In 1934, the Board of Control for Cricket in India organised the Ranji Trophy but Bengal did not take part in 1934–35. Bengal achieved first-class status in December 1935 when they played the Australian tourists and were defeated by 9 wickets. In January 1936, Bengal joined the Ranji Trophy, playing in the East Zone, and reached the semi-final where they lost to Madras. In 1937, Bengal were runners-up and, in 1939, winners of the Ranji Trophy. Throughout this period, Bengal was essentially a West Bengal team. They were based in Calcutta and played all their matches at Eden Gardens. The earliest match of note in Dhaka was in February 1941 when a Bengal Governor's XI played the Bengal Gymkhana at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, then called the Dacca Stadium.Bengal Governor's XI v Bengal Gymkhana, 1941
With the Partition of British India in 1947, Bengal itself was partitioned with West Bengal remaining an Indian province and East Bengal becoming the eastern wing of Pakistan. In 1955, the western wing became West Pakistan and East Bengal became the new province of East Pakistan. The two wings were separated by some 1,600 km (1,000 miles) of Indian territory and, despite their common religion of Islam, the ethnic and linguistic gulf between the two, compounded by an apathetic government based in the west, eventually resulted in the independence of Bangladesh. While Pakistani cricket was strong in the west, there was no first-class cricket in East Bengal until the 1954–55 season.
East Pakistan
Between the 1954–55 and 1970–71 seasons, thirteen East Pakistan first-class cricket teams played in Pakistan's domestic cricket competitions, the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy and the Ayub Trophy. Many played in only a single season or two. The most prolific were East Pakistan (nine seasons), Dhaka University, East Pakistan Greens and East Pakistan Whites (three each). Chittagong is a good example of the sporadic way in which teams from East Pakistan were involved in the national competitions as they were scheduled to play three matches between 1959–60 and 1965–66 and all were abandoned without play starting. The main East Pakistan team played first-class matches against the touring Indians in 1954–55 and Marylebone Cricket Club in 1955–56.
East Pakistan staged Test cricket from January 1955 when a match between Pakistan and India was allocated to the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka. The stadium was used for numerous important matches including Tests through the 1960s. The M. A. Aziz Stadium in Chittagong also dates back to 1954 as a first-class venue but it was not used for Tests until Bangladesh played there in 2001.
Relations between East and West Pakistan had been tense since Partition. East Pakistan was plunged into turmoil on 12 November 1970 when Cylone Bhola struck Bengal with enormous loss of life and devastating impact on the community and economy. The Pakistani government, based in West Pakistan, was roundly condemned for procrastination in its response to the crisis. A few weeks later, when the country's first general election was held on 7 December, widespread outrage in the East resulted in victory for the Awami League which was a Bengali nationalist party under the leadership of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. This led to an opening of talks between representatives of the East and West wings of Pakistan about the future of the country's constitution under a national government headed by the Awami League, and proposals for the division of power between the central government and the provinces. The talks were unsuccessful in breaking a deadlock and, on 1 March 1971, Pakistani President Yahya Khan indefinitely postponed the pending National Assembly session, precipitating massive civil disobedience in East Pakistan. Three weeks later, Bangladesh formally declared its independence and the country was plunged into its liberation war which raged through 1971 until intervention by India, in support of the Bangladeshis, on 3 December 1971. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was short-lived and resulted in Pakistan's capitulation on 16 December 1971, celebrated as Victory Day in Bangladesh, which was then established as a new nation.
The last first-class match to be completed in East Pakistan was between a Pakistan Cricket Board XI and the touring International XI in Dhaka from 26 February to 1 March 1971.CricketArchive: BCCP XI v International XI 1971 It was drawn and its final day coincided with Yahya Khan's suspension of the National Assembly, the action which finally triggered the liberation war. The International XI left Dhaka next day for Lahore and played one further match there to end their tour. Two Quaid-i-Azam Trophy matches scheduled to be played in Dhaka during March were both cancelled because of the national emergency.List of first-class matches in Pakistan 1970–71
1972 to 1977 After independence, the new state endured poverty, famine, political turmoil and military coups until the restoration of democracy in 1991 which has been followed by relative calm and economic progress. Cricket had to find its way forward amid the turmoil but it was helped by successive governments, civil and military, which treated its development with some importance. In 1972, the government created the Bangladesh Cricket Board, then called the Bangladesh Cricket Control Board, with a directive to organise cricket in the new country. In the aftermath of the war, this was no easy task. Barclays World of Cricket records that, in early 1975, the national stadium in Dhaka was "in such disrepair (some buildings being shell-torn) that the cricket square had sunk several inches after years of disuse".Barclays World of Cricket, E. W. Swanton (editor), Willow Books (1986), p.75.
The problems of post-war recovery apart, cricket was popular in Dhaka and the first organised competition of note was the club-level Dhaka Metropolis Knockout Tournament staged in February and March 1973.Matches in 1973 Dhaka Metropolis Knockout Tournament A national club championship began in 1974–75 and has been held in most seasons to 2015.National Cricket Championship 1974–75 This gained sponsorship by the Wills tobacco company from 1983 to 1984, then by Pepsi from 1993 to 1994, but it has never been a first-class competition. It has similar status to league cricket in England or grade cricket in Australia.
The worst of the problems had been addressed by the start of the 1976–77 season. In January 1977, the inaugural Bangladesh national cricket team was selected for a match against the touring MCC at the Bangabandhu National Stadium. MCC also played against North Zone, East Zone and South Zone which was the first time that any of these teams, now in the Bangladesh Cricket League, were selected. Although the MCC team included some notable county cricket players such as Mick Norman, John Barclay, Dan Piachaud and Nigel Popplewell, their matches on the 1976–77 tour were not first-class. Even so, Bangladesh made a favourable impression on MCC and it was in 1977 that the country became an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC).
1978 to 1986 The first full international team to visit Bangladesh was Sri Lanka in January 1978. Sri Lanka was then close to ICC Full Member status (achieved in 1982) and their higher standard was underlined by a series of innings victories in the three international matches against Bangladesh. The three-day match in Dhaka starting on 13 January 1978, which Sri Lanka won by an innings and 9 runs, was Bangladesh's debut in international cricket but the very low standard of Bangladeshi cricket at the time means that it was not a first-class match.CricketArchive scorecard: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka 1977–78.
Sri Lanka also played against a BCB President's XI, South Zone and Central Zone, the first time that this team was selected. In early February, the first Indian team to visit Bangladesh was the Hyderabad Blues who played a single game in Dhaka against the national team. MCC returned in December 1978 and played six matches at various locations, five of them against the national team. None of the 1978 matches were first-class.
Bangladesh made their competitive international debut when taking part in the 1979 ICC Trophy, held in England between 22 May and 21 June, but failed to reach the semi-final stage. Captained by Raqibul Hasan, Bangladesh were in Group B (there were three qualifying groups of five teams each) against Canada, Denmark, Fiji and Malaysia. Bangladesh struggled in their opening match against Fiji but were rescued by Ashraful Haque who took 7–23 to secure a 22-run victory. In the second match, Bangladesh were well beaten by Canada. They won convincingly against Malaysia and so needed to defeat Denmark in the last match to qualify for the semi-finals. It was a close game but Denmark won by ten runs. Denmark won the group with Canada second and both of these two qualified for the semi-finals, Bangladesh being placed third. Sri Lanka then defeated Denmark and Canada in turn to win the tournament.