RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (AP) — Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto believed his team’s first test cricket series win over Pakistan will give his compatriots reason to smile amid ongoing difficulties.
The recent civil unrest that toppled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina caused Bangladesh to be stripped of the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup, and in the past week the country has been hit by deadly flash floods that have affected millions of people.
“For the last 1 1/2 months, everyone (in Bangladesh) has struggled a lot,” Shanto said after Bangladesh beat Pakistan by six wickets in the second test on the last day Tuesday.
“We all know cricket is a very emotional thing in our country, so I hope they will get some smiles because we’ve won the series.”
Bangladesh followed an epic 10-wicket victory in the first test at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium with a comeback win in the second test on the same ground.
Bangladesh was 26-6 in its first innings but Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz batted them to just a 12-run deficit. Then the fast bowlers dismissed Pakistan for 172 and Bangladesh reached the winning target of 185 in 56 overs.
“The belief in the dressing room is very different this time,” Shanto said. “We were nervous (at 26-6) but the way Litton and Miraz batted … we believed that those guys will take us to a good position.”
Shanto was impressed with the work ethic of young fast bowlers Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana, who shared nine wickets in the second innings.
“We read the conditions very well,” Shanto said. “The bowlers did their job … and just tried to bowl in the channel for a long time, not like one or two overs. The bowlers did a lot of hard work and that’s why we got the result.”
Bangladesh is scheduled to tour India this month for two tests and three Twenty20s, and Shanto said the historic win in Pakistan — only their second series triumph away from home — boosts their morale.
“This series (in Pakistan) gives us a lot of confidence,” Shanto said.
AP cricket:
Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto, right, shakes hand with Pakistan’s Shan Masood after winning the second test cricket match against Pakistan, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Bangladesh’s Mominul Haque, right, and Najmul Hossain Shanto run between the wickets during the fifth day of second test cricket match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto plays a shot during the fifth day of second test cricket match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto holds trophy after winning the test cricket series against Pakistan at a ceremony, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s controversial former central bank governor was detained Tuesday after being questioned in several corruption cases, according to three judicial officials.
Salameh served a 30-year term as central bank governor beginning in 1993.
Though he was widely celebrated for his role in Lebanon’s economic recovery after a 15-year civil war, Salameh left his post last year under a cloud, with several European countries probing his alleged financial crimes. He was blamed by many in Lebanon of being responsible for the country’s financial crisis since late 2019.
Salameh has repeatedly denied allegations of corruption, embezzlement and illicit enrichment. He insists that his wealth comes from inherited properties, investments and his previous job as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch.
Salameh was questioned Tuesday by the top public prosecutor, Judge Jamal Hajjar, for over three hours, according to the three officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case with the media.
Salameh was interrogated over several financial matters, including a case in which he allegedly hired a company called Optimum to manipulate financial statements and conceal Lebanon’s haemorrhaging financial losses.
The officials said that Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces transferred Salameh to a more secure prison but did not disclose further details. He is expected to remain in custody while he is interrogated. Hajjar is expected to file charges against Salameh in the next few days, after which his case will be transferred to an investigative judge.
Salameh has been among the officials most blamed for policies that led to the country’s economic crisis, which has decimated the value of the Lebanese pound by around 90% against the U.S. dollar and sparked triple-digit inflation.
The U.S., the U.K, and Canada have sanctioned Salameh and his close associates, and France issued an international arrest warrant against him, though Lebanon does not extradite citizens.
France, Germany, and Luxembourg also are investigating Salameh and close associates over alleged illicit enrichment and the laundering of $330 million.
Salameh has criticized the European investigation and said it was part of a media and political campaign make him a scapegoat.
Lebanon has not appointed a new central bank governor, but a vice governor, Wassim Mansouri, has been named acting governor. The crisis-hit country has also been without a president for almost two years and is run by a caretaker Cabinet with limited functions.
FILE – Riad Salameh the governor of Lebanon’s Central Bank, listens to a journalist’s question during a press conference, in Beirut, on Nov. 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)
