Bangladeshi cricket team in New Zealand in 1997–98
The Bangladesh national cricket team toured New Zealand in November and December 1997 and played four first-class and four List A matches against teams representing the northern, central and southern regions of New Zealand. Bangladesh also played three List A matches. They lost two by large margins, one was unfinished, and a fourth was abandoned without play. Bangladesh were captained by Akram Khan. Bangladesh had just won the 1997 ICC Trophy and was a candidate for Test status, which was granted on 26 June 2000.[1]
Bangladesh had been playing List A matches since 1986, but the four first-class matches on this tour were the first first-class matches played by any Bangladeshi team.
Bangladesh made its official First Class match debut.
Phil Chandler took over wicketkeeping duties after Jason Mills was struck while batting on day 2.
All the Bangladesh players made their first-class debuts. In the Bangladesh second innings Kerry Walmsley took 5 for 23 and Mark Haslam took 5 for 25. The match, scheduled for four days, finished on the third afternoon.[3]
Mark Jefferson had innings figures of 3 for 5 and 5 for 42. Jefferson's match figures of 8–47 were his best in first class cricket. No Bangladesh batsman reached 50. The match was over by the end of the second day.[4]
The convenor of New Zealand's selection panel, Ross Dykes, thought Bangladesh played at a level below first-class standard – more like Hawke Cup district association standard. Wisden's report said the batsmen "played suicidal one-day shots early in first-class innings", and noted that the bowlers took only 36 wickets in the four first-class matches at a collective average of 47.16.[7]
Aftermath
Seven of the team – Akram Khan, Al Sahariar, Aminul Islam, Habibul Bashar, Hasibul Hossain, Khaled Mashud and Mehrab Hossain – all played in Bangladesh's inaugural Test match three years later. Javed Omar, Manjural Islam and Sanwar Hossain also played Test cricket. For Athar Ali Khan, Jewel Hossain and Mafizur Rahman, in contrast, the matches on this tour comprised their entire first-class careers.
New Zealand had intended to invite Kenya to play in the 1998–99 Shell Conference, but after Bangladesh's lack of competitiveness they changed their minds and invited the stronger Pakistan A instead.[7]
