Bangladesh fast bowler Shoriful Islam scripted history during the second Test against Australia on Sunday, despite his team suffering a heavy defeat in Mackay.
Shoriful produced an outstanding bowling performance, claiming 7 wickets for 48 runs in 15 overs. His remarkable spell made him the first left-arm fast bowler in 140 years to take seven wickets in a Test innings against Australia.
The last left-arm pacer to achieve the feat was England’s Dick Barlow, who recorded figures of 7/44 in Manchester in 1886. Overall, the best bowling figures by any bowler against Australia in Test cricket belong to England’s Jim Laker, who took all 10 Australian wickets for just 53 runs in the second innings of the Manchester Test in July 1956.
Bangladesh also achieved another historic milestone following the latest update to the ICC Test rankings on Sunday. Despite winning the first Test and losing the second against Australia, Bangladesh climbed three places to reach No. 6 in the Test rankings.
It was the first time Bangladesh had moved above ninth place in the Test rankings. Test captain Najmul Hossain Shanto described the achievement as a major milestone.
“Of course, reaching No. 6 is good news. I am just hearing about it. To reach No. 6 in the Test rankings is a huge achievement. It would have been better if we could have played better cricket in this Test match,” Shanto said after Bangladesh lost the second Test by an innings and 51 runs.
Bangladesh moved ahead of the West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to occupy sixth place with a rating of 78.
Shanto also called for Bangladesh to play more Test cricket in Australia, pointing out that the recently completed 1-1 series was the team’s first Test series in the country in 23 years.
“We are here after 23 years. It’s not easy to compete in these conditions against a team of this quality. If we are able to come here consistently, the players can get an idea of playing here. They will gain more experience in Australia, adjust to these conditions and play good cricket,” Shanto said.
