While the rest of the world was engulfed in the events of September 11, in Bangladesh, however, the show managed to roll on. The notable casualties being the postponement of the

treated to a high-class exhibition of cricket.

Despite the defeats a new fast bowler Mashrafee-bin-Mortuza Kowshik announced his arrival on the international scene.

Unfortunately, America based production company WorldTel did not show the whole spectacle. It pulled the plug at the last minute due to a dispute with its Indian satellite broadcaster Sony Entertainment Television.

Thankfully, a joint collaboration by state-run Bangladesh Television and private network Ekushey Television made it up for the viewers.

While participation in the ATC matches in Pakistan and Sri Lanka turned out to be nothing more than a learning exercise for the fledgling Test team, Bangladesh managed to discover a teenage batting sensation by the name of Mohammad Ashraful.

The 17-year-old put his senior teammates to shame when he defied Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas to surpass Pakistan's Mushtaq Mohammad's long-standing record as the youngest centurion on debut.

We should not lose hope of one day winning a Test match if younger players like Kowshik and Ashraful come to the fore to entertain the grand arena.

SAME FOOTBALL SONG

Bangladesh missed out on reaching the second stage of the World Cup qualifying campaign. Nothing unusual about that considering the fact none of foreign national coaches have been able to improve the quality or quantity of players.

Domestically, Abahani regained the championship title, but the Premier League is still dogged by a spate of fixed matches regardless the innovative measures the organisers try to implement before each season.

True that successes of the local club's have been so few and far. Yet we come to accept that some things never change.

When a Korean side in an Asian Club Cup match trounced Federation Cup champions Muktijoddha the result was so embarrassing that a leading club official tried his very best to conceal the final score.

Similarly, the BFF got into hot water by allowing over-aged players in an Asian age -group competition and as a result it was heavily fined by the AFC.

But all that pales in comparison with the prospect of being banned by FIFA early next month if it does not reinstate BFF's sacked executive committee.

A CHESS MASTER IS BORN

Hail Ziaur Rahman. Finally he made the nation very proud by

ZIAUR RAHMAN ... king of the sixty-four squares

Ninth South Asian Games scheduled to begin in October in Pakistan and India's reluctance not to let Dhaka host the Asian Test Championship final.

Ironically, after all of New Delhi's commotion over the trivial issue they themselves did bar the national team from taking part in the second edition of the regional meet.

So, as another year draws to a close it is time to take stock of those achievements, failures, the highs and lows in our sports calendar. Along the way have emerged some characters or events that took precedence over others.

More than anything the past 12 months served to remind us how reflective and eventful it really was.

HECTIC CRICKET

The year 2001 was a pretty busy time for our national team. They spent most of the time abroad. During that period Bangladesh visited Zimbabwe, took part in the Asian Test Championship and have just completed a tour of New Zealand.

In April under a new skipper Naimur Rahman, Bangladesh played two Tests and three one-day internationals. But after the visitors were whitewashed in the Tests at Harare and Bulawayo and the one-dayers also ended in the home side's favour, there were plenty raised highbrows at the lacklustre performance.

Ironically, couple of months later an out-of-form Naimur was stripped of the captaincy mid-way through the Southern African nation's return visit. He was not even allowed to continue as player.

Zimbabwe were themselves going through a lean spell so they attached a great deal of importance to their November tour. Except for a rain-affected drawn Test at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, the Zimbabweans comfortably won the second Test at the country's newest Test venue the MA Aziz Stadium. The ICC approved it as cricket's 82nd Test arena. And the people of the bustling port city were

MOHAMMAD 'PROMISE-FUL' ASHRAFUL

becoming the country's second Grand Master since Niaz Murshed in the mid-80s.

The country's number one player reached the pinnacle during a tournament in Paris in early November.

Zia, 27, fought his way through 13 top-ranked GMs to earn the elusive third norm.

Earlier his road to the top began with victories at the 1999 British Open and this year's Goodrike tournament in Kolkata. We hope that he does not rest on his laurels. He must be allowed to flourish himself further so that he does not lose his way in the wilderness like Niaz. The BCF (Bangladesh Chess Federation) and sponsors must use the Zia's success as a catalyst for others to take up cerebral warfare.

HOCKEY'S SCOTTISH NIGHTMARE

What should have been the stick-wielders' finest year turned out to be an outright disaster! We refer to the World Cup qualifiers held in Scotland in July where Bangladesh under German coach York Schumacher lost all eight matches, conceded 37 goals and scored just six to ultimately collect the wooden spoon in 16-nation competition.

The days when Bangladesh's hockey had great promise are a far cry.

HEROES ANDVILLIANS

Kowshik deserves special praise from the time he was tipped for greatness by none other than former West Indian bowler Andy Roberts.

The teenager from Narail was plucky from virtual obscurity. His pace has instantly troubled world-class batsmen like the Flower brothers Andy and Grant during their visit here in November.

Where there is a hero then there must be villains too. Who FROM PAGE 13

better fills that category than Zafer Imam and Sheikh Nizamuddin who together greatly influenced the Bangladesh Cricket Board elections in February.

But thankfully the media uncovered the scheme and following outcry an inquiry pointed the finger at Imam, the Bangladesh Olympic Association secretary general and Nizam, a Board director from Satkira.

The down side of the story is that the former Board of Saber Hossain Chowdhury took no strong action against the pair.

NOT A SPLASH

Among other minor sports swimming grabbed the headlines.

It was not because it made a splash in the past 12 months. Rather for a sad swimmer who thought he had made a name for himself in Pakistan only to learn days later that his feat was deemed not worth the paper the timing on which it was written because tragically it was not measured electronically.

DEFINING MOMENT

The end of Saber reign as cricket supreme was arguably the story of the 2001. The youngest ever Board president, Saber who changed the sport's landscape was removed in late August from office along with several other politician-cum-sports administrators as part of the caretaker government's effort to ensure a free and fair general elections in October.

Cricket will badly miss the eloquent-speaking Saber.

TRANSITION

Among well-known figures to have left the world of sport included eminent journalists Tawfiq Aziz Khan (Executive Editor of The Daily Star) and Rouful Hassan.

Tawifiq Aziz Khan, a well-known television and radio commentator, lost his battle with lung cancer in February 11. During the 64-year-old's distinguished career

he was the first Bangladeshi to cover all four tennis Grand Slams.

Rouful, who was the former Sports Editor of The Bangladesh Observer and Special Correspondent, died after suffering a stroke in November. His career spanned nearly a quarter of a century.

Their contribution to field of

sport will be forever recalled.

Just like in life there is no final word or chapter that can perfectly sum up a course of an event or happening. The best thing we can do as the curtain falls is perhaps make a renewed pledge to reach a certain goal in the days and months ahead. Farewell 2001! Welcome 2002!