Whipping boys still struggling to mature

Left to sink, Bangladesh performed exactly as you would expect club cricketers to perform in Test cricket. They couldn't stay in when they batted, and they couldn't get anyone out when they bowled.

Their place at cricket's top table has been seriously questioned by critics who believe their presence has cheapened Test runs and Test wickets and that they would be better off playing in a second division of world cricket with other weaker teams like Zimbabwe, Kenya and the USA.

However, the International Cricket Council have shown no indication of reversing Bangladesh's Test status and as long as Asia remains the economic hub of the game, they are here to stay. Cricket's ruling body want the game to expand and believe the depth of support in Bangladesh makes it a nation worth investing in.

"Cricket is the No1 sport in Bangladesh," said an ICC spokesman. "The ICC take the view they have a commitment to help Bangladesh close the gap with the other nations. We are doing this by investing time, money and expertise in cricket there."

So, what are we to make of the forthcoming bunfight between the second best team in the world and their mismatched opponents?

Bangladesh have undoubtedly been dealt a difficult card by cricket's powerbrokers.

On their first four tours of England, Sri Lanka had one-off Tests tagged on to the end of the main summer programme, usually played in late August, after a couple of months acclimatising against the counties.

The ICC calendar now makes it mandatory for Test teams to play each other home and away every five years in series of at least two games.

Unlike in the old days, the weaker teams have nowhere to hide.

Bangladesh's first two Tests in this country have been scheduled for Lord's and The Riverside at a time of the year when the ball is likely to move appreciably through the air and off the seam - conditions that could not be more removed from Dhaka.

Their wretched innings defeat to a weakened Sussex team last week prompted one newspaper to print the mocking back page headline, 'Anyone fancy a ticket for Lord's?' The answer to that would appear to be 'yes', for the first three days anyway. A combination of the enduring appeal of Test cricket in this country and the enthusiasm of ex-pat Bangladeshis has ensured respectable pre-sales for both Tests. At Lord's, more than 50,000 tickets-have been sold for the first three days and nearly 10,000 tickets have been sold for each of the first two days at the Riverside.

England's batsmen, whose collective form during five weeks back in the bosom of their counties this season has been poor enough to warrant a psychology dissertation, won't be too concerned about the pedigree of their opponents. They need time in the middle and an opportunity to get into form for the Lord's Test that really matters - on 21 July.

If any warning against complacency were needed, it has come from Bangladesh's substantial improvement since the streetwise Dav Whatmore took over as their coach after their hopeless performance in the 2003 World Cup.

He has added organisation and professionalism to a team that had none and has made this lightweight apprentice better equipped to compete against the heavyweights of international cricket.

Bangladesh will remain the whipping boys of Test cricket until their talented young players reach maturity, which would be a huge shock if it happened before the main event gets under way this summer.