Just a week ago, Bangladesh were reeling from six consecutive defeats. Now, they find themselves on the brink of winning back-to-back series.
T20 cricket is a fast-paced game where things can change in an instant — and perhaps Bangladesh are starting to sense that shift. From a team drowning in disappointment just days earlier, they now have the chance to secure two consecutive series wins.
After a dominant display with both bat and ball in the series opener against Pakistan, Bangladesh now have the opportunity to clinch their first-ever T20 series win over the arch-rivals. One more win from the remaining two matches, and Liton Das, Taskin Ahmed, and their teammates will have a trophy to celebrate.
But only a week ago in Dambulla, before the second T20 against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh were staring down the barrel of a third straight series defeat. They had lost both matches in the UAE and then again on the Pakistan tour.
Their fortunes didn’t seem to change in the first T20 of the Sri Lanka series either, suffering a sixth straight loss and facing waves of criticism. However, they turned things around in Dambulla — and another win the following Sunday put them in position for yet another series triumph.
With the opening win at Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Bangladesh ended a nine-year wait for a T20 victory over Pakistan. The last time they had beaten Pakistan was in the 2023 Asian Games — though neither team fielded a full-strength side in that event.
Now, Liton’s men have the chance to make history by sealing their first-ever T20 series win over Pakistan — just as they did against Sri Lanka a week ago.
Bangladesh have already ticked off a major milestone against Pakistan. Before this, they had never won a single match in three multi-game T20 series against them. Their only T20 win came in a one-off game on the 2015 tour, followed by a victory in the 2016 Asia Cup.
On Tuesday, Bangladesh will face Pakistan in the second match with a series win in their sights. Even if they lose, they’ll still have another chance — but Liton, Taskin, and the team will certainly want to get it done without delay.
So far, Bangladesh have only twice managed to win back-to-back T20 series. The first time was in 2021 against Zimbabwe, Australia, and New Zealand. The second was across 2022–23, when they defeated UAE, England, Ireland, and Afghanistan.
If Bangladesh can win one of the remaining two matches, Liton will move closer to matching the leadership records of Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah. The wicketkeeper-batter has already lifted two series trophies as captain — a third would bring him level with their achievements.
Under Shakib’s leadership, Bangladesh have won four out of seven bilateral series. Mahmudullah captained Bangladesh to victory in four series as well, though it took him eleven attempts.
This year, Liton has the chance to equal or surpass both of them. Ireland and the West Indies are set to tour Bangladesh in October and November, and talks are underway to arrange a series against Afghanistan at the start of October.
To seize those milestones, Bangladesh need to maintain their consistency — something Liton emphasized before the series, stating they wanted to carry forward the momentum from the Sri Lanka tour.
After their win over Pakistan, Player of the Match Parvez Hossain echoed that sentiment in the press conference following his unbeaten 56-run knock:
“We played really well in the last T20 series in Sri Lanka. Everyone was very confident. We tried to maintain that confidence — and that’s how we approached today’s game.”
Bangladesh will now need to stick to that same mindset of confidence in the two remaining matches of the series.
