THE Bangladesh cricket team deserves a pat on the back and so do the officials who are associated with the team for a performance that has seen several individual and international records tumble on the last day of the Khulna Test between Bangladesh and Pakistan. Not only did the Tigers save the match, the manner of their play to reduce a huge deficit shows that our cricket has come of age. And it is not a mean effort to break a fifty-five year old record established by two Englishmen for the highest number of runs for the first wicket in second innings. What is most appreciable is that the approach of the team, to what was a daunting task, was very positive indeed.   

We would like to believe that this is not a flash in the pan. The Bangladesh cricket team's performance in the recently concluded World Cup and the shorter version series against Pakistan shows that the team has acquired the temperament that helps it to perform with consistency. We would hope that our performance over the last several months in particular is a fitting riposte to those critics who questioned the very rationale of giving Bangladesh Test status.    

The Tigers should remember that with their recent performance they have raised the country's expectations from them. The important thing is to learn from the mistakes and build on the achievements so far. In any competitive game there will be winners and losers. We all expect our cricket team to make winning a habit.