Harsha Bhogle hailed the Bangladesh Cricket Team for their historic win over Australia in the first Test of a two-match series at the Marrara Stadium in Darwin. The Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side took a 1-0 lead with a nine-wicket victory after a dominant display in which they outclassed the hosts in all three departments.

The Tigers created history, as it marked their first-ever win against Australia in Australia in any format of the game. This was their third test Down Under and ninth match overall in the country.

In a video on his YouTube channel, Bhogle pointed out how the talk before the match was about whether the visitors would be able to ensure the game lasts over three days. He further praised them for sealing the victory and recalled that in the past, they have lost games from winning positions.

“Bangladesh have had some memorable moments in their history. But very few to match what they have just achieved in Darwin. To go to Australia and win a test match in Australia? I mean, I’m going back to all that happened before the match started. Will it last three days? Will it last four days? People in the Bangladesh camp, those who are playing, saying we’d like to take the game to five days and then from there on to do what they did is incredible,” said Bhogle

“There’s a couple of reasons why I was fascinated by this Bangladesh performance. Because I’ve been in situations before, I’ve been at grounds before where I’ve seen Bangladesh in a winning situation.

In fact, against Australia all those years ago and they gave the impression they weren’t aware they were in a winning position. Australia clawed back from an almost impossible situation to win in Bangladesh. I was going back to 2006,” he added.

The veteran commentator reserved special praise for centurion Tanzid Hasan and hailed his transformatio from being a Test player after years of performing in white-ball cricket.

“What I was curious to see was, after they had Australia down for 198, how would they react? And I was overjoyed to see the performance of young Tanz Hasan. Because we’ve been hearing about him for a while. We’ve seen him as a very good white ball player but to show the temperament that he did in red ball cricket was very, very good.

“And I thought his partnership with Momimul Haque, who’s an established red ball player, that laid the base and that told Australia, you know what, you’re not going to get us bowled out for 120 just because you made 198. And then the others, their best pattern. For a while now, Najmul Shanto. and then contributions all the way.

Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehdi Hassan Miraj, who gives their side the same kind of balance that Shakib Ul Hassan used to. But don’t also forget the contributions all the way down from people like Tazkina Ahmed, Taijul Islam, Hassan Mahmood. All of them contributing.They might look like scores in the teens but that makes a huge difference. Once they got that lead, they had Australia on the hog. We’ve been talking for a long time about how this Australian team is there for the taking,” Bhogle eloborated.

Bhogle further claimed that Bangladesh’s display should make England ponder their display in the 2025-26 Ashes, where they lost the five-match series 4-1 to Australia as their shambolic record in Australia since winning the 2010-11 series continued.

They might well come back and win the second test, I don’t know. But England will look at this and say, how on earth did we not win the Ashes against a team that is there for the taking? But this blog is about Bangladesh. The other big factor, probably the number one factor for Bangladesh doing as well as they are, is over the last few years, they’ve got a really solid base of fast bowlers. There’s Ibadat Hussain now. I think he was sent straight when they won that test match in New Zealand. No Nahid Rana, but they still put together Ibadat, Tazkine, and as I’ve often said, the player that I like the most in Hassan Mahmood,” said Bhogle.

“There’s a couple of others in there. Shorifull is there as well if you need him. So there’s a core of fast bowling talent that is essential for any team on its way up. There was a time in Bangladesh when they played four spinners. To now go there and win with fast bowlers is fantastic. And then the role that Mehdi Hassan Miraj plays. Because he bats at seven, as the track starts to wear, they’ve got two spinners in Taijul and Mehdi Hassan. So it gives their bowling a complete feel. What I was most fascinated with, as I said about the fast bowling, was about the temperament that the batting showed,” he further explained the transformation of the side.

Bhogle urged Bangladesh to only see this victory as the start of their progression and not get carried away.

“I only hope they’re a very emotional team. They’re a very emotional country. I hope they regard this win as a big high. And then forget about it. And they come back to play the next test. Use it as a board from which they climb higher. Not just get carried away in the biggest win in their history. So wish you well, Bangladesh cricket. I hope this leads to much more,” Bhogle concluded.

Disclaimer: This article summarizes a report by Harsha Bhogle. While Times Now has verified the public data presented, the interpretations of ‘intent’ remain those of the creator.