DHAKA, May 10: Bangladesh deserved Test recognition despite the nightmarish start of losing all but one of their 11 Tests, the country’s cricket community says.

“The situation would have been the same if Test status had come four or five years later,” former national captain Raquibul Hasan said.

“We had to start one day and so we got it in the year 2000 as part of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) globalisation programme,” he said.

Bangladesh needed some time to improve under highly skilled professional guidance, he added.

Bangladesh, granted Test status on June 26, 2000, played their inaugural match against India in Dhaka in November 2001.

Since then they have played 11 Test matches against India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and New Zealand.

They lost all, except one against Zimbabwe which was washed out.

But its not been all bad news for Bangladesh.

Aminul Islam, Mohammed Ashraful and Habibul Basher have all scored Test hundreds, and there have been five-wicket hauls from Mohammed Sharif and former captain Naimur Rahman.

The national team is currently preparing for a series of two Tests and three one-dayers in Sri Lanka in July.—AFP