DHAKA – Tens of thousands of Bangladeshis partied through the night after their team pulled off a famous win over England that keeps their World Cup quarter-final dreams alive. Thousands of despondent fans streamed out of the stadium in Chittagong on Friday as Bangladesh looked to be heading towards the World Cup exit but they staged a remarkable recovery to snatch an improbable victory.
Shakib Al Hasan’s side needed 57 runs to win with just two wickets in hand but the ninth-wicket pair of Mohammad Mahmudullah and Shafiul Islam took Bangladesh home and sent the nation of 150 million into raptures. The Dhaka University campus in the capital turned into a “human sea” as fans thronged the main square and clogged roads, dancing and setting off crackers into the early hours of the morning, police chief Rezaul Karim said. “At least 50,000 people partied on the campus.
Girls and boys joined with elderly people to shout Bangladesh, Bangladesh and danced to the patriotic songs. Many also blasted crackers,” he told AFP. “It was a like a human sea and throughout Friday night people kept pouring in to join the celebrations,” he said. Young men waved flags from motorbikes, banging drums and blowing vuvuzelas. Police said tens of thousands of people also celebrated in the southeastern port city of Chittagong, where the match took place.
Joyous supporters filled the streets around the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury stadium, delaying the England and Bangladesh team buses. “Some 10,000 fans poured onto the roads in front of the stadium and partied with drums and songs. Tens of thousands also thronged the roads in front of the hotel where the teams were staying,” Chittagong police chief Abul Kashem said. “It was an unprecedented scene. People just became crazy,” he added.
The fans’ behaviour was a far cry from their reaction after Bangladesh crashed to their lowest ever one-day international score of 58 against the West Indies in Dhaka. Angry fans stoned the bus carrying the West Indies team, believing it was the Bangladesh bus, and also attacked captain Shakib’s house. Bangladesh president Zillur Rahman and prime minister Sheikh Hasina led the praise for the cricketers after their victory over England.
Hasina watched the match at her Dhaka residence and congratulated the team for their “thrilling” victory, the prime minister’s office said in a statement. The match dominated the front pages of local newspapers, with most downplaying the devastating Japanese earthquake and tsunami to splash on Bangladesh’s famous victory.
