Preparing U-19 Champions for International cricket is most important
BCB president Nazmul Hasan has recently said that the board has a long-term plan for the World Cup winners.
After an epic win in the ICC U-19 World Cup by Bangladesh, we should put this win into perspective with what this does for the national team - the team that has been struggling for a while now.
The players in this under-19 team have been playing together for over two years so they know their roles and know how to play and win as a team.
That was perhaps most evident in the final as all the players did their part while bowling and fielding, and when the chips were down and the middle-order faltered, captain Akbar Ali came in to play the innings of a lifetime.
But the biggest question on everyone's minds have to be whether these players go on from here and replicate this in the international stage.
This is not a team that relies on individual brilliance so the inhibition from many within the cricketing fraternity has been whether these players can go on and perform in the same way in the international stage.
BCB says they have a long-term plan
BCB president Nazmul Hasan has recently said that the board has a long-term plan for the World Cup winners.
"It's a big problem that most of the players who played in the U-19 teams in the past few years failed to continue showing their prowess in international cricket and dropped out. We have discussed it for a long time. We know that despite playing a good brand of cricket, they will not get a chance in the national team now," he said.
The BCB boss understood that the structure needed improving and that included the high-performance team as well as the first-class cricket.
"Then what will they do? If we engage them in the high-performance unit, that will not ensure a place for them in the national team. So we will come up with a new idea once they will back home on Wednesday," Nazmul told the media on Monday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
Nazmul said the success in the ICC U-19 World Cup is the result of getting prepared for the event for the last two years. According to him, the board knew that these guys always had the ability to lift the trophy.
"We knew the problem of our age-level team. So we started preparing this team two years ago. We arranged many matches for them before the World Cup."
"They did well in every series they have played in England, Sri Lanka and New Zealand. None of the members of this team thinks about personal glory. Instead, they are very focused on team effort. And its result is what they have accomplished in the final," Nazmul added.
Past stats paint a gloomy picture
Sabbir Khan (1998), Hannan Sarkar (2000), Nafees Iqbal (2002), Ashikur Rahman (2004), Mushfiqur Rahim (2006), Sohrawardi Shuvo (2008), Mahmudul Hasan (2010), Anamul Haque (2012), Mehidy Hasan Miraz (2014, 2016) and Saif Hassan (2018) have been the captains in the previous U-19 World Cups for Bangladesh.
Apart from Mushfiq, none of the others have gone on to have big careers and the likes of Hannan Sarkar and Nafees Iqbal were touted to have massive international careers.
More recently, Anamul Haque and Mehidy Hasan Miraz were big performers in the U-19 World Cups but they have had start-stop careers so far, although Miraz has been slightly more successful than Anamul.
Anamul was the highest run-getter in the 2012 World Cup but in internationals, that has not transpired. He averages under ten in Test cricket and while he started his ODI career with a century against Zimbabwe, his recently form has kept him out of the national team.
Anamul, now 27, is still doing well in first-class cricket with close to seven thousand runs and an average of 46.89 but the level of cricket in internationals has been too much of a leap for him.
Miraz, whose side reached the semi-final in the 2016 World Cup was touted as the next Shakib Al Hasan as he could lead the bowling attack and be a top performer with the bat.
While he started his Test career with a bang, helping Bangladesh defeat England for the first time in a Test match with his bowling, his performances have not improved since.
He now has a bowling average of 41 in ODIs and 33.12 in Tests.
What's been more startling has been his lack of improvement with the bat.
He averages below 20 in Tests and ODIs and many believe that has been due to him being played lower down the order.
But it is evident that international cricket has been a different ball game for these players.
Whatever the case, the board needs to wrap these players up in cotton wool and ensure that they have the best chance to do well in international cricket.
The careers of the big five – Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad – won't go on forever and finding their replacements have become a big worry for the cricketing fraternity.
Many are wresting their faith on the likes of Towhid Hridoy and Shariful Islam to be the next big things of Bangladesh cricket but as it stands, this is just the beginning for these players and the real challenge to make it big begins now.