‘Cricket carries high expectations’

State Minister for Youth and Sports Aminul Haque has ordered all sports federations to review their performances at the Aichi-Nagoya 20th Asian Games, with Bangladesh’s disappointing cricket campaign set to come under particular scrutiny.

Bangladesh returned from Japan with just one bronze medal, won by wushu fighter Jinnat Akter, despite sending a contingent of around 300 athletes and officials at a cost of nearly Tk20 crore.

The former footballer voiced his frustration on Sunday while handing Jinnat a Tk1 lakh cash prize at a reception at the National Sports Council (NSC) Tower in Dhaka.

“We all have high expectations from cricket because we play at the highest level like the World Cup,” Aminul said. “They have a reputation in the international arena. Our football results are also not up to the mark.”

Aminul said the ministry would now seek a comprehensive assessment of Bangladesh’s performance across all 22 disciplines.

“I have already told the executive director of the NSC to send letters to every federation to review their overall performance and bring them under accountability, so we can make future decisions about them,” he said.

Cricket’s failure is expected to be a major focus of the review. Bangladesh had won bronze medals in both men’s and women’s cricket at the Hangzhou Games in 2023, but failed to defend either medal in Aichi-Nagoya.

The men advanced to the semi-finals on ranking after their quarter-final was washed out, but lost to Pakistan before suffering a heavy defeat to Sri Lanka in the bronze-medal match. The women also failed to reach the podium.

Kabaddi, another traditional source of Asian Games medals, has endured a prolonged decline. The men have been outside the medal bracket since 2010, while the women lost their medal position at the 2018 Jakarta Games.

Aminul said Bangladesh could no longer afford to treat the Asian Games as an event merely for participation.

“We no longer want to participate just for the sake of participation; we must aim to truly fight for medals,” he said.

The former goalkeeper also criticised the country’s short-term approach to preparation and called for a shift towards sustained, year-round training.

“Our preparation suddenly starts just before any tournament. It is not a magic wand that I can cast a spell and bring back a medal overnight,” he said. “So, we will move towards long-term, year-round training.”

Bangladesh’s lone bronze has nevertheless exposed the depth of the country’s sporting decline, particularly as neighbouring nations continue to invest in long-term planning, specialised training and sustained athlete development.