Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto has urged cricket administrators to schedule more frequent Test series in Australia after Bangladesh suffered a heavy two-day defeat in Mackay. Australia levelled the two-match series 1-1 with an innings-and-51-run victory at the Great Barrier Reef Arena on Sunday.
Bangladesh had secured a historic nine-wicket win over Australia in the series opener in Darwin after scoring 426 runs. However, their batting collapsed during the second Test in Mackay, with the visitors dismissed for just 64 and 95 runs. They struggled to handle the pace and bounce generated by Mitchell Starc.
Pace and Bounce Are Quite Challenging - Najmul Hossain Shanto
Speaking after Bangladesh's heavy defeat in Mackay, captain Najmul Hossain Shanto called for more regular Test tours of Australia. He said that the pace and bounce are difficult to handle and that playing in such conditions more often would help Bangladesh's players gain valuable experience.
“The pace and bounce are quite challenging, and this experience will help. Obviously, the quality of the bowling attack is another area we can improve on. As you mentioned, with the World Cup in South Africa, I think this experience will help.”
The Mackay Test ended after just 750 legal deliveries, one of the shortest completed Tests in history. Notably, the match finished inside two days, with 30 wickets falling, as Bangladesh's batters struggled against Mitchell Starc, who finished the match with 10 wickets haul.
We Are Here After 23 Years - Najmul Hossain Shanto
Najmul Hossain Shanto pointed out that Bangladesh returned to Australia for a Test series after 23 years. He believes regular exposure would help players adjust to Australian conditions and high-quality bowling attacks.
“We are here after 23 years, and it is not easy to compete in these conditions against a quality team. If we can come here consistently, the players will gain experience and learn how to adjust to these conditions and play good cricket.”
Shanto also highlighted the lack of experience within the current squad, noting that most of the players had never played a Test in Australia. He stated that Bangladesh want to play in Australia and similar conditions regularly instead of waiting decades between tours.
“It is hard for the players. Probably 90% of the players have not played here, so they don't know how to adjust or cope with these conditions and this kind of bowling attack. My request is that we want to play here and in similar conditions consistently, not after 23 or 25 years.”
"We wanted to play here, we wanted to play similar kinds of conditions consistently - not 23 years, 25 years."
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) August 23, 2026
A strong message from Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto. #AUSvBAN pic.twitter.com/zcwRKWPBAU
Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins Dismantle Bangladesh
Australia bowled Bangladesh out for 64 and 95 in Mackay. Mitchell Starc claimed 10 wickets in the match, including 6/12 in the first innings, while Pat Cummins also made a major impact. Australia won by an innings and 51 runs to level the series 1-1.
Shoriful Islam produced Bangladesh's best bowling performance, taking 7/48 to dismiss Australia for 210. Cameron Green top-scored with 67, while Steve Smith made 42 and Nathan Lyon remained unbeaten on 32. Bangladesh conceded a 146-run first-innings lead.
Najmul Hossain Shanto top-scored for Bangladesh in the second innings with 31 off 46 balls, while Mushfiqur Rahim remained unbeaten on 29. Starc, Cummins and Lyon then completed the job as Bangladesh were dismissed for 95.
