& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

Change, order of the day

Syed Ashfaqul Haque
Wh'i i dreams turned into ashes in Kenya, country's < Ticket heroes suddenly turned into villains
Albeit the change of hearts towards the superstars' following their success in Kuala Lumpur, a call for a change in both combination of cricketers and the conservative attitude of selectors is nothing new at all.
The success-starved nation which was soaring at dizzy heights following their stirring
ICC (International Cricket Council) Trophy triumph in Malaysia eariy this year woke up into a harsh reality when the national campaigners hit the lowest ebb in the Just-concluded triangular invitational tournament in Kenya.
Unlike the last Asia Cup in Sri Lanka. Bangladesh, as far as status or experience is concerned, did not have to fight against any superpowers of world cricket in Nairobi. Defeats In Colombo were quite understandable and even, to some extent, acceptable as that was nothing but an opportunity to rub shoulders with three Asian ^its — world champions Sri ka and two other former champions India and Pakistan.
But the Nairobi spectacle was a meeting of the minnows where Zimbabwe, the newest of the nine Test-playing nations, were labelled and not illogi-cally, the favourites ahead of Bangladesh ind Kenya, the two newcomei In International cricket wl i earned ODI (one-day international) status last
Predictably. Zimbabweans .won the trophy, but Bangla-
desh who lost all the lour lea gue matches miserably, made a mockery of their aspiration for the Test status by settling for the wooden spoon .
Kenya, who lost to Bangladesh in the final of the ICC meet, not only exacted a sweet revenge but also brought the high-flying Bangladeshis down to where they actually belong. The Africans stamped their superiority in every department of the game. In the first match against Bangladesh their openers Deepak Chudasama and Kenedy Otieno scored 225 runs together to shatter the world first wicket partnership record of 212 runs held by Australians Geoff Marsh and David Boon against India in 1986-87. And in their second encounter. Kenyan bowlers skittled Bangladesh out for a meagre 92 . For once there was consistency in Bangladesh's performance. In the previous match against Zimbabwe they were all out for 100 again on a good batting wicket.
International cricketers have taken the abridged version of the game to such a height where everything needs to be near perfection. It is true that our cricket has just set its foot on international arena and cricketers require plenty of time to acclimatise with the highly competitive and purely professional environment. But no excuse is just and no criticism is enough for what happened in Kenya. Let alone the sub-standard bowling, batting and fielding departments, the fitness level of our cricketers or the lack of it does not permit them to participate in any competitive meet. There should have been some criteria to qualify in the national team. It seems to easy at the moment. One reason is the non-avail-ability of reasonably good players. And one reason for this air of no competition is because the absence of an integrated and coordinated system of bringing under the spotlight talented young cricketers from across the country. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) should evolve a system where no player will be able to take things for granted. Otherwise none of the cricketers, who consider their place as guaranteed, will concentrate on performing better.
Prior to the team's departure for Kenya, coach Gordon Greenidge. who did not have a say in selection, expressed his dissatisfaction to The Daily
Star by saying that half <>l his «>ys were fit Tor a tournament l.ke that and others needed a lot ■o improve if they wanted to continue with the team in future. Did not team physiotherapist Dr Zawad report the same? If it is so how come the selectors pick a team where half the members were unfit? Is it purely because of their star fixation or the ICC Trophy hangover that they have failed to draw up a pragmatic plan for the future? Did they ever have a serious look into the recent oer-
formances of those privileged blokes? Is not it evident that the old guards of the national team have already exhausted their potential?
They have done their national duty fairly well. And the nation also honoured the heroes overwhelmingly. Now it is time to build the tomofrow on their success. Onus is now on the younger generation to take cricket to Its desired goal — the elite echelon of Test cricket. But as the game’s governing body in the country, BCB ought to take the Initiative to exploit the unprecedented enthusiasm of the youths and kids across the country. As the selection panel of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has been suffering from the seasoned superstar syndrome, youngsters seldom get chance to try their hands at the international level. Whatever the result be , the nation has no other way but to see the passage of the same old feces from the national team.
Lesson lies in every loss. Those who are wise learn from the mistakes they make. And country's cricket lovers wait to see what BCB learns from its blunders.