Tigers, Proteas in Chittagong
The Bangladesh and South Africa cricket teams arrived in Chittagong yesterday afternoon to play the third and final one-day international on Wednesday and the first match of the two-Test series which will begin on July 21.
Both the teams arrived on the same flight of US Bangla Airlines, which landed at the Shah Amanat International Airport at 3:50pm. The Tigers, who beat the Proteas by seven wickets in the second one-day international on Sunday in Mirpur to level the series at 1-1, were given a reception by their adoring fans who thronged the sides of the roads from the airport right up to the Hotel Radisson Blu Chittagong Bay View where the teams are staying.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Both the teams are scheduled to hold practice sessions at the match venue, the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium (ZACS), today.
With a chance to confirm a fourth consecutive series victory, the Tigers will be hoping that their 'lucky venue' yields them another win against one of the world's best teams. The Tigers have won nine out of the 15 matches they have played here since the venue was introduced to international cricket in 2006. The latest of those wins, and also the latest match to be held here, was a 68-run win for the hosts against visiting Zimbabwe in November last year. The Tigers won the series 5-0 before going on to reach the quarterfinals of the World Cup for the first time in Australia and New Zealand earlier this year. The Tigers returned home to whitewash Pakistan 3-0 in April before beating India 2-1, also at home. None of those matches, though, were played in Chittagong.
This venue has seen Bangladesh beat the West Indies, England, Netherlands and Scotland apart from Zimbabwe. However, the only time the Tigers faced South Africa here, back in March of 2008, they lost by nine wickets. The current team, though, has only three members from that squad in skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and opening batsman Tamim Iqbal.
Comments