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Chintito
A
Belief
Rediscovered
Chintito
 Bangla-desh!
Bangla-desh!
The night air was rent asunder with chants that symbolised
unrestrained emotions and harmony among the people.
Once again
a joy, this one significantly in this month of our glorious
victory 33 years ago, has done wonders to our national pride
and morale.
There
were dancing in the streets, drumbeats, fireworks, sweets,
flower petals and abundant merriment--elements that had deserted
us as a nation for quite sometime. And that is, not to speak
only in the sporting arena.
The eruption
of the mountain of joy after beating India handsomely with
more than two overs to spare in our thrilling 100th ODI outing
on December 26 reveals anew how wonderful the people of Bangladesh
are. How little it can take to make the people of this blessed
country contented! If only our political leaders would understand
and take lessons…
For so
long have we been the butt of endless criticism that we required
a victory against one of the giants. Arguably the best one-day
batting side in the world had rested two of their top performers
for the match, but then Sachin Tendulkar has not been in the
nick for sometime and there are days when Rahul Dravid falters.
Furthermore, that decision was taken by India, who definitely
did not enter the packed Big Bowl with the intention of losing
an ODI.
The fact
that our boys went out there to win was amply exhibited by
the flair of Aftab Ahmed with the bat and that last Indian
wicket throw, the grit of MoM Mashrafee-bin-Mortuza as a tailender,
a bowler and a fieldsman, the athleticism of Rajin Saleh to
dismiss Mohammad Kaif and turn the match, the wisdom of skipper
Habibul Bashar to maintain an attacking field to mount the
pressure, the guile with which Khaled Mahmud removed Sourav
Ganguly, and the all-out effort of every fielder till the
fall of the mighty Indians.
Bashar's
pre-match statement that the 11-run defeat at Chittagong in
the previous ODI gave signs that the Indians were not unbeatable
proved to be prophetic. One had only hoped that his counterpart
Ganguly could have been more generous with his comments in
analysing their close call at the M.A. Aziz stadium.
Now that
the boys know they can do it, we shall hope for more consistency
particularly with the bat. One Ashraful assault in one match,
a Bashar blitz in another and an Aftab attack in yet another
shall have to be transformed into three Bashars, Ashrafuls
and Aftabs in one single match. You can then sit back and
watch the rest of the world not associating us with only floods,
bomb blasts, terrorism and political mayhem.
The celebrations
last Sunday would have carried on all night but for the decider
the following Monday. So it was early to bed. The SWM's deadline,
albeit extended, means this piece has to be filed even before
the first ball is delivered in the 3rd ODI at the Bangabandhu
and we have no way of knowing the outcome. But there shall
be celebrations at the end of the match because, if not anything
else, we have compelled by our performance, to make India
sit up and think, to force India to field their best. There
is no room for complacency against Bangladesh. That I believe
is a big for us.
Whatever
happens Monday this maiden victory against India shall remain
memorable as the first on home soil and that too against the
largest cricketing nation in the world. Isn't it nice to know
that a nation of about 15 crore has humbled one with one billion
inhabitants?
Let this
win be a curtain raiser of more beautiful things to come.
Let it be a lesson, an inspiration, of rediscovering ourselves
in not only cricket but in other arenas as well. We can do
it if only we believe we can.
Thank
you guys for a wonderful New Year's present. Thank you chaps
for letting the world know through your determined outing
and victorious emergence that whatever the struggle, whoever
the adversary, the Bangalee never lowers his head. …
kobhu matha noabar noy!
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(R) thedailystar.net 2004
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