What Bangladesh’s win in Darwin means beyond cricket

Arif Hasan, a Bangladeshi expatriate living in Australia, had an unusual Sunday. An engineer from Cumilla, he found several neighbours smiling and talking to him as he stepped out onto the street, even though it was a weekend. They were congratulating him. They knew the name Bangladesh, but most of them had thought of it mainly as a distant, troubled and impoverished country. In this age of populism, some even assume that people from such countries flock to Australia to take away their jobs.

People like Arif—hardworking, skilled and friendly—gradually help dispel such notions. But something happened on Sunday that worked almost like magic. Australians, passionate about sports and fiercely proud of their national teams, realised that Bangladesh had beaten them in a Test match. On their own soil, against their strongest team, Bangladesh had dominated for four days and defeated a side that had barely been considered a serious opponent.

The clearest evidence of that disregard was that Bangladesh had been invited to Australia for a series only after 23 years. Even then, the matches were played outside Australia’s renowned venues, in relatively obscure locations such as Darwin and Mackay. The series was also being held during the Australian cricket’s off-season. Even sponsorship was difficult to secure. Assuming the match would end within three days, no tickets had been sold for the fourth day in the most expensive section of the stands.

Australia had fielded its strongest side, but their body language clearly showed a lack of respect for their opponents. Captain Pat Cummins’ pre-match comments carried a dismissive tone. Experienced pacer Josh Hazlewood said their preparation had been different because they did not have enough footage of Bangladesh. In this age of technology, some might interpret that as evidence that they simply had not thought much about Bangladesh.

The media, too, helped reinforce that perception. There was widespread mockery and banter about the Test being over in two days and Bangladesh suffering an embarrassing defeat. Given that Bangladesh had lost to Zimbabwe just a month earlier and had been bowled out for 54 in a warm-up match in Australia, the concern may not have been entirely unreasonable. But Bangladesh received far less respect than it deserved as a Test opponent. Australia had taken them too lightly.

As a result, when Bangladesh began dominating from the very start, even the highly professional Australians became unsettled. Veteran Mitchell Starc lost his temper and sledged Mehidy Hasan Miraz. Steve Smith, a world-record holder for catches, dropped several straightforward ones. After dropping Taskin Ahmed’s catch at the boundary in particular, Smith stood with his head bowed, looking like a broken man.

One of the greatest players in the world, Smith’s greatest quality is his trademark Australian resilience. Yet while batting in the second innings, he looked so bewildered that he asked for a review even before the umpire had raised his finger. He seemed like an anxious teenager. After being bowled, one of the world’s most aggressive batsmen, Travis Head, stood strangely still. He replaced the bails that had been knocked off the stumps and then remained motionless. The commentators said they had never seen such strange behaviour before.

Those same commentators, while players of two teams were shaking hands after the match, pointed out the difference in their heights, noting that these small-built boys had come to Australia, knocked the hosts over, and elevated their own stature in the eyes of the world.

That was exactly the feeling experienced by thousands of expatriate Bangladeshis like Arif. In his magnum opus ‘Beyond a Boundary,’ one of the great philosophers of the 20th century, CLR James, showed how success in cricket had increased the respect accorded to Black people in the Caribbean across the world.

After each victory on English grounds, in particular, crowds of Black people wearing bell-bottom trousers and celebrating throughout the day would pour into the streets. The impact beyond the field was far greater than what happened on it. People who had once been regarded as slaves realised that their dignity as human beings was in no way inferior to anyone else’s.

In the modern world, international sporting success can bring a kind of respect that is extremely difficult to achieve in other ways. Sporting success works as soft power. It helps create positive perceptions of a country and its people. That is why even someone like Donald Trump, who understands virtually nothing about football, became extremely enthusiastic about hosting the FIFA World Cup in his country.

An academic study found that Liverpool footballer Mohamed Salah has played a major role in reducing Islamophobia in the country—something that would have been difficult to achieve through other means. Football success has given countries such as Argentina and Brazil a distinctive stature in the world.

Brazil provides an easy way to understand the theoretical side of this phenomenon. A common perception is that “natural talent” and poverty made boys from Brazil’s favelas the best footballers in the world. But behind this romantic narrative lies a much more concrete chain of cause and effect.

The Brazilian team sent to the 1958 World Cup was the product of careful planning and execution. Those responsible for the team travelled to Sweden well in advance, studied everything on the ground and meticulously planned the campaign so that the players would have to travel as little as possible during the World Cup while enjoying comfortable accommodation and adequate preparation. Not only that, strict attention was paid to every player’s diet, family and sex life, health practices and every aspect of training.

The story began after the Second World War. Brazil and other Latin American countries, freed from colonial rule, began encouraging domestic industries, which led to growth in employment and wages. This brought some improvement in the living standards and purchasing power of the working class. Businesses flourished, creating a new educated middle class.

As the national economy gained momentum, investment in football increased, including in infrastructure, attracting talented young people from poorer sections of society. It was also an era of rapid growth in mass communication, including radio, turning football into the centre of a mass aspiration and collective imagination.

In short, meticulous planning, substantial rewards and recognition for success, and the use of football as a tool for nation-building helped make Brazil the world’s best footballing nation.

These factors are crucial to success in modern sports, particularly team sports. There are no shortcuts. Sporting success therefore indicates that a nation has the discipline and potential to succeed. People from that country can succeed in other fields just as they do on the sports field. All they need is opportunity.

Bangladesh has just proved that. The victory in Darwin did not come out of nowhere. Over the past several years, Bangladesh have strengthened their pace-bowling attack. A group of pacers has emerged through planning and years of hard work. This trend is likely to continue. And these players have developed mental strength.

The small-built Bangladeshis can look a player like Starc in the eye and respond. That confidence is what matters. And that feeling spreads to the hearts and minds of millions of expatriates.

A victory like this on foreign soil gives people like Arif the courage to believe that we are inferior to no one. Planning, hard work and determination can make us world-class.

Extreme nationalism breeds populism and division. But in the modern world, the competition should be fought in the spirit of sport. We should compete to make ourselves the best, without belittling anyone. We should shake hands after winning.

Millions of expatriate Bangladeshis around Australia and across the world will be deeply inspired by this victory. It will motivate them to strive for excellence. We can do it; we can beat anyone and win. What we need is sound planning, hard work and determination.

We do not participate merely for the sake of participation. We participate to win. That belief from cricket can spread into every aspect of our national identity.

*Syed Faiz Ahmed is a researcher and writer.