Month: February 2023

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed that Bangladesh will compete in the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup by virtue of being the host nation for the event.

Eight teams earned direct qualification for the tournament based on their rankings, while the remaining two spots will be determined through a qualifier event.

The top three teams from each of the two groups in the 2021 Women's T20 World Cup, along with the hosts Bangladesh and the highest-ranked team outside of the six direct qualifiers, earned automatic qualification for 2024.

As a result, teams including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, England, India, and the West Indies have secured their places. Pakistan has also qualified as the next highest-ranked team.

Sri Lanka and Ireland narrowly missed out on direct qualification and will have another opportunity to qualify for the 2024 event through the Women's T20 World Cup Global Qualifier.

The Qualifier tournament will feature eight teams competing for the final two spots in the 10-team 2024 Women's T20 World Cup, which will be hosted in Bangladesh.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Rangpur and Rajshahi Divisions reached the men's football final of the Sheikh Kamal 2nd Bangladesh Youth Games' 2023 eliminating their rivals in the semifinals at the Palton Outer Stadium in the capital on Tuesday.

Rangpur Division booked a seat for the final eliminating Khulna Division by 3-0 goals in the day's first semifinal in the afternoon.

Alamgir struck twice in the 73rd and 90th minutes while Shahriar opened the Rangpur account in the 18th minute.

In the day's 2nd semifinal, Rajshahi Division eliminated Sylhet Division beating them by 2-0 goals also on Tuesday afternoon.

After a barren first half, Saddik put Rajshahi ahead in the 67th minute while Akash sounded the margin scoring one more goal for Rajshahi in the 84th minute.

The gold medal deciding men's final match between Rangpur and Rajshahi Divisions will be held on Friday (March 3) at 2:45 pm at the same venue while the 3rd place deciding match between two losing semifinalists will be held on Thursday (March 2) also at 2:45 pm.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

The three-match ODI series between Bangladesh and England is set to begin on Wednesday in Mirpur. Ahead of the first match, Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha expressed confidence in the team's ability to perform well despite the fast bowling threat posed by the visitors.

Bangladesh enters this series with the happy memory of beating India at home in December 2020. Hathurusingha said the teams for the first two ODIs would be similar to the one that beat India.

The Bangladesh coach believes that the pace attack of the English side will be the biggest challenge for the hosts.

“They have one of the best pace attacks in the world. They have five fast bowlers and three spinners on this tour. The challenge will be to play their fast bowlers in this series,” Hathurusingha said.

Bangladesh is expected to field a formidable team in this series, whereas England will be without some of their key batters who are currently playing a Test series in New Zealand. Nevertheless, Hathurusingha acknowledged that despite being understaffed, England remains a formidable opponent given their impressive performances in the past decade.

“They are the world champions. They have one team playing somewhere else; they have another team here. They have a mind-blowing depth of talent,” Hathurusingha added.

Ahead of this ODI series, which is a part of the World Cup Super League, Bangladesh's coach is confident about the performance of Mustafizur Rahman.

“When he is in form, he is one of the world’s best bowlers. We won the India series when he started,” he said. “He is coming back to that form now. He bowled really well in the recent India series too. He always bowls in the crucial moments, so we will try to use him as a strike bowler.”

Moeen Ali, the England allrounder, also said that Mustafizur may play an important role for the Tigers.

“We know he is a very good bowler and he is a threat,” Moeen said. “We also know Bangladesh actually has a very good bowling attack, especially in these conditions.”

Spinners are likely to play a significant role in this series. In addition to Shakib Al Hasan and Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Bangladesh has Taijul Islam in their arsenal. The combined attack of these three spinners could pose a significant challenge to the English batters. In contrast, England has Moeen, Adil Rashid, and young Rehan Ahemd. They can be the biggest threat to the Tigers on home soil.

“When you come to these places, you expect good spinners bowling, good spin bowling,” Moeen said. “They are very good, we know how well they've done over the years here, and Bangladesh as a team has done really well. But it's not just their spinners; their seamers are also very good.”

Before this series, Bangladesh played a total of 21 ODIs against England and won only four of them, with the last win coming more than six years ago.

The first two ODIs are scheduled to take place on March 1st and 3rd in Dhaka, while the third ODI will be held in Chattogram on March 6th. All matches will commence at 12 pm each day.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Rangpur Division clinched the Women's Handball title of the Sheikh Kamal 2nd Bangladesh Youth Games' 2023 beating Dhaka Division by 30-17 goal in the final at Shaheed Capt (retd) M Monsur Ali National Handball Stadium in Paltan area of the capital on Tuesday.

Senior Secretary to the Home Ministry M Aminul Islam Khan witnessed the day's final as the chief guest and later he distributed the medals. General Secretary of Bangladesh Handball Federation Asaduzzaman Kohinoor was also present on the occasion.

Champions Rangpur Division earned the event's gold medal, Dhaka Division won the silver while Rajshahi Division took the bronze medal.

Earlier in the semifinals, Rangpur Division eliminated Rajshahi Division beating them by 34-11 goal while Dhaka Division reached final defeating Khulna Division by 20-10 goal.

Rajshahi Division finished 3rd beating Khulna Division by 37-14 goal in a place deciding match at the same venue.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

Ahead of the first match of the three-match ODI series between England and Bangladesh, England allrounder Moeen Ali spoke about the threat posed by Bangladesh's left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman.

While Mustafizur took one wicket only in two ODIs against England in England, his record of 141 wickets in 82 ODIs with five five-wicket hauls at home shows his skills on home surfaces.

Moeen acknowledged Mustafizur's abilities, saying, "We know he is a very good bowler and he is a threat. We also know Bangladesh actually has a very good bowling attack, especially in these conditions."

When asked about England's plan to face Mustafizur, Moeen said that they will prepare for all of Bangladesh's bowlers, not just him.

Moeen also commented on the expected spin on the wicket in Mirpur, stating that England expects good spin bowling but also acknowleded the strength of Bangladesh's seamers.

Despite England's recent struggles in ODIs, Moeen expressed confidence in their ability to implement their attacking approach in Mirpur and said that they have a strong group of players.

England has faced Bangladesh in 21 ODIs to date, with Bangladesh winning only four of them. As the current champions of both white-ball World Cups, England will be looking to continue their winning streak in this series, and in contrast, Bangladesh are eying to continue on home dominance.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

The England national team is ready to compete in three 'One Day Internationals' and three Twenty20 matches. The first match is scheduled to take place on March 1. Right before the series, there was speculation surrounding a clash between Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan. This raises a question about Bangladesh’s preparation and rhythm in the team before the BAN vs ENG ODI Series 2023.

Tamim Shakib Clash

Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal are two influential stars in the country's cricket based on performance and seniority. The environment of the team's dressing room also depends on them. Ahead of the upcoming England series, everyone is dreaming about the series win. But if the internal environment of the team is not good, it is sure to affect the match. That is why the Shakib-Tamim relationship is again in discussion. Board President Nazmul Hasan Papon has also opened up about this.

The rivalry between Shakib and Tamim has intensified in recent times. Both Shakib and Tamim appeared at an event a couple of weeks ago. But they were not seen talking to each other there, which did not escape the attention of Tiger fans. After that, the issue became a topic of discussion on social media. However, the relationship between the two is not unknown to Papon. He also tried to solve it.

More: BAN vs ENG ODI Series 2023: Top Players to Watch

Speaking to sports media, Cricbuzz, the BCB President, said the Bangladesh team’s dressing room environment is not good due to grouping issues. And the clash between Tamim and Shakib works as a catalyst for that. However, BCB president Papon has spoken to both of them and understands that it is not easy to resolve the issues between them at this moment.

Nazmul Hasan Paonon conveyed that we don't know what is going on between them, but in the match or series, their personal problem should not affect the field performance. Later they both promised to comply.

The relationship between Shakib and Tamim has been quite bitter for a long time. They talk to each other on the field if needed. But it is limited to the field. There is not a word between the two outside the field. And Bangladeshi cricketers are also facing trouble because of this. However, Tamim assured that these issues would have any effect on the field.

How Ready Are Bangladesh Squad to Face England?

Right before the England-Bangladesh series, Papon pointed out the grouping issue inside the Bangladesh cricket team. And this grouping is currently the biggest problem in Bangladesh cricket, and this is the reality. Other than that, everything seems to be fine.

This issue raises the question that whether the Bangladesh team are ready to give their best against England. Well, Bangladesh cricket team captain Tamim Iqbal is hopeful for a series win.

Left-handed opener Tamim did not directly deny the issue of his relationship with Shakib. However, he claims that it has no effect on the team. He emphasized that nothing else matters except what takes place during the game. ODI captain Tamim has clearly said that everything is fine on the field; it doesn't matter what happens outside the field. At a press conference prior to the England series, Tamim made such a claim.

However, Tamim denies the grouping issue. He pointed out that whenever the team did not play well, some people rumored the grouping issue. But he didn't see grouping in the teams even 16 years ago. He didn't see it even 10 years ago.

However, he has not been with the team for the last 6 months. But he claims that he still sees everyone doing well and doesn’t see groupings within groups. Hence, the Bangladesh team is ready to face England.

To support his claim, Tamim talked about the result of the recent series of Bangladesh, as the team won most of the games. He also claimed that, When Shakib and Tamim take the field, if they both give their best, nothing else matters.

Bangladesh’s most recent win was the series at home against India in December, although Tamim Iqbal did not play. Last year, Bangladesh won the ODI series against Afghanistan, South Africa, West Indies, and India, only losing a series against Zimbabwe. So, it is expected that the Bangladesh team will continue their good performance.

Bottom Line

Bangladesh's ODI squad has already started training under Chandika Hathurusingha, who is back as the coach of Bangladesh for the second time. However, Shakib Al Hasan has not joined the training yet due to a family issue. Although there are various discussions about the relationship between Shakib and Tamim, the two biggest stars of Bangladesh cricket at this moment, the impression of that relationship was not seen on the field.

Rather, Shakib and Tamim were seen talking or celebrating the team's victory at various times on the field. Even in the last match of the three-match series against South Africa in 2022, Shakib and Tamim hugged each other and left the field smiling after securing victory by the wicket.

Keeping aside the Tamim Shakib issue Bangladesh team is getting prepared to face England in the upcoming BAN vs ENG ODI Series 2023.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

A fire broke out at a spinning mill in Vulta area of Narayanganj's Gausia on Tuesday afternoon.

Anwarul Islam, warehouse inspector of Fire Service and Civil Defense headquarters, said that the fire broke out at Nannu Spinning Mills in Vulta area of Gausia at 1:07 pm.

On information, five firefighting units rushed to the spot and are trying to extinguish the blaze.

Two more firefighting units left for the spot to join the extinguishing work, he said.

No injury or casualty was reported till the filling of this report at 2:30 pm.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

World Cup winner Lionel Scaloni will remain as coach of Argentina to the end of the 2026 World Cup.

The Argentine Football Association and Scaloni confirmed the deal on Monday. They didn’t elaborate.

The 44-year-old Scaloni and AFA president Claudio Tapia met in Paris before the FIFA awards late Monday, when Scaloni was named men’s world coach of the year.

“When trust is high, communication is clear and effective,” Tapia said on Twitter in a post with himself and Scaloni smiling and drinking tea in the French capital. “We continue to trust our project of national teams to Lionel Scaloni, the World Cup winning coach.”

Scaloni’s contract expired after Argentina won the World Cup in Qatar on Dec. 18. Long negotiations followed.

Scaloni took over at the end of 2018 as a temporary measure, and received waves of criticism for his lack of experience. He had never coached a professional team. One year later, the job was his permanently.

He guided Argentina to the 2021 Copa America title, the team’s first in 28 years. Captain Lionel Messi and other key players repeatedly said they wanted Scaloni to remain on the job for the 2026 World Cup.

At the awards in Paris, Scaloni said, “The most beautiful thing is making your country happy, your people happy.”

Argentina’s first match since Qatar — and another celebration of the world champion — will be a March 23 friendly against Panama at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.

Source: United News of Bangladesh

New Zealand completed a dramatic fightback on the last day to beat England by 1 run Tuesday and become only the fourth team in history to win a cricket test after being forced to follow-on.

On a day of constant twists and turns, Joe Root scored 95 in a partnership of 121 with Ben Stokes (33) which appeared to have secured England’s victory and a 2-0 win in the two-match series.

Root and Stokes were out within a run of each other with 56 runs still needed and the match which had been heading England’s way tilted back in favor of New Zealand with seven wickets down and the lower-order exposed.

Wicketkeeper Ben Foakes then made 35, facing down the New Zealand attack and shepherding the tailenders to guide England within sight of victory. But in another twist, Foakes was out with seven runs still needed.

Last man James Anderson clubbed a four down the ground which left England two runs from a match and series victory and the crowd holding its collective breath. Then in the last, dramatic moment, Anderson was caught down the leg side by a diving Tom Blundell from the bowling of Neil Wagner.

In a defining comeback for Wagner and his short-pitch bowling, he took 4-62, dismissed Root and Stokes and held three catches on the final day to seal New Zealand’s narrowest test win.

England twice and India once are the only other teams to have won a test after having to follow. The last occasion was in 2001 when India beat Australia by 171 runs at Eden Gardens.

The result also ended England’s run of six consecutive test wins and leveled the two-match series, allowing New Zealand to avoid its first defeat in a home series since 2017. The New Zealanders were heavily beaten in the first test and were again well behind in the game after the first innings in Wellington.

“It’s a special win this and we’ll celebrate what is an amazing achievement,” Wagner said. “I think it’s just the character of the team. We love to fight for one another, find a way and keep on doing the hard yards out there.

“The first test we didn’t get on the right side of it and they played well. I thought they played really wellin the first innings here in really tough conditions but we just found a way of contributing and get in a good position and (this) is a special one.”

The grassy banks of Wellington’s Basin Reserve were crowded on a workday Tuesday to see the denouement of an already extraordinary match.

For the second time in the series, Stokes made an assertive first innings declaration with England 435-9. England then bowled out New Zealand for only 209 to take a 226-run first innings lead.

Stokes chose to enforce the follow-on with his attack having bowled 53.2 overs and the second innings became an ordeal as Kane Williamson made 132 and New Zealand batted more than 160 overs to post 483, setting England 258 to win.

England came into the final day at 48-1, still needing 210 runs but with the odds on its side and 103 overs in the day. Under Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum and the so-called Bazball approach to the game, England has won six tests while chasing, notably scoring 378 to beat India at Birmingham last year.

But when New Zealand took four wickets in the first hour of an extended first session, the equilibrium of the match was disturbed. England lost nightwatchman Ollie Robinson, opener Ben Duckett then Ollie Pope and Harry Brook to consecutive deliveries to slip to 80-5 with 178 still needed.

Brook’s wicket was crucial after he made 186 in the first innings for his fourth century in five tests. Root was the guilty party in his dismissal Tuesday, taking a hazardous single and running out Brook before he’d faced a ball.

Root and Stokes seemed to have repaired the England innings. Root was the aggressor, reaching his 57th test half century from only 51 balls, while Stokes seemed restricted by an injury to his left knee and made his 33 from 116 balls.

But Wagner’s double blow to dismiss them both in consecutive overs likely was the turning point of the match. Foakes’ diligent innings ensured a thrilling finish as the upper hand in the match passed moment by moment from one team to the other. Even England’s Barmy Army of fans was largely rendered silent as they watched the action in almost breathless tension.

“It’s obviously very disappointing to get a loss here with the great winter we’ve had,” Stokes said. But “to be able to come away and win four out of five away from home is something we’ll take great pride in. We’ve got a few months off before the Ashes (series against Australia) starts and hopefully we can get back to doing what we love doing.”

Source: United News of Bangladesh

World Cup champion Lionel Messi edged Kylian Mbappé again, this time to take FIFA’s best men’s player award on Monday.

The best women’s player was Spain’s Alexia Putellas for a second straight year.

After steering Argentina to World Cup glory in an epic final against Mbappé’s France last year in Qatar, Messi won the best player vote against Mbappé and Karim Benzema and secured the FIFA prize for the seventh time in 14 years.

He won the World Cup at his record-equaling fifth attempt.

“It was a crazy year for me,” Messi said. “I could fulfil my (World Cup) dream after fighting for it for so long. And in the end it happened, and it was the most beautiful thing of my career. It’s the dream of every player, but very few can achieve it, so I’m thankful to God for being able to do it.”

The three players made the final shortlist in voting by a global panel of national team captains and coaches, selected journalists in each of FIFA’s 211 member countries, plus fans online.

The 35-year-old Messi also beat Mbappé — who was seeking his first best player award from FIFA — to the Golden Ball trophy awarded by FIFA for the World Cup’s best player. Mbappé earned the Golden Boot as top scorer.

In the FIFA Awards vote, Messi had 52 points, Mbappé 44, and Benzema 34.

Mbappé, 11 years younger than Messi at 24 and considered Messi’s heir apparent on the world stage, made the three-man shortlist for the first time. He was fourth in voting for the 2018 award, the year he led France to the World Cup title.

Real Madrid star Benzema won the more prestigious Ballon d’Or in October ahead of the World Cup. The France forward missed the tournament because of injury. Messi was not on the long list of Ballon d’Or candidates announced in August.

Robert Lewandowski won the FIFA award the last two years, and Cristiano Ronaldo was left off the 14-player shortlist for the award this year for the first time.

Messi broke a record he shared with Ronaldo by making the men’s world best XI for the 16th time. The team included Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois, Morocco’s Achraf Hakimi, Portugal’s João Cancelo, Dutchman Virgil van Dijk, Belgium’s Kevin de Bruyne, Croatia’s Luka Modric, Brazil’s Casemiro, Norway’s Erling Haaland and France’s Mbappé and Benzema.

Earlier Monday, French prosecutors opened a preliminary investigation into a rape accusation against Hakimi, a defender at Paris Saint-Germain.

Messi voted for former Barcelona teammate Neymar as his choice for best player. Only Brazil captain Thiago Silva also voted on Neymar.

Russia’s coach and captain were not banned from voting in the award.

Putellas won her award from Alex Morgan of the United States and Beth Mead, who led England to the European Championship title in 2022.

Barcelona playmaker Putellas made the top three again despite being injured days before the Euro and missing the tournament. She scored 34 goals across all competitions last season.

Mead was the joint top scorer at the Euro, and was named the tournament’s best player. She sustained a serious knee injury in November while playing for Arsenal and could miss the Women’s World Cup in July in Australia and New Zealand.

Morgan, who was second in the 2019 vote to teammate Megan Rapinoe, was player of the tournament when the U.S. won the CONCACAF W Championship last year. She was also the joint top scorer.

Earlier, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni was voted FIFA men’s coach of the year after leading his team to the World Cup title in December.

The women’s coach award went to Sarina Wiegman, who led the England to the title at the Women’s European Championship.

Scaloni took over Argentina at the end of 2018 on an interim basis, and was widely criticized for lacking experience as he had never coached a professional team. Earlier Monday, his contract as the national team coach was extended to the end of the 2026 World Cup.

The other coaches on the shortlist were Real Madrid’s Carlo Ancelotti and Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola.

The women’s goalkeeper award was given to Euro winner Mary Earps of England, and the best men’s goalkeeper was Argentina’s World Cup winner Emiliano Martínez.

The event in Paris was marked by tributes to Pelé, who died late last year at age 82 following a battle with colon cancer. Pelé’s wife, Marcia Aoki, received a trophy honoring the soccer great from the hands of former Brazil striker Ronaldo.

“I have three words to say to God, who gave us Edson; to Edson, who gave us Pelé; and to the world, who received them so well: Grateful, grateful and grateful,” she said.

Source: United News of Bangladesh