They were called the ‘minnows’ the non-Test playing nations that won their way through to the World Cup. Pre  1999 Sri Lanka, East Africa, Canada, Zimbabwe, Kenya, the Netherlands and the UAE had all played World Cups without Test status.

 In 1999 it was Kenya, Scotland and for the first time ever at a, World Cup Bangladesh.

 While cricket had been played in the region for nearly 200 years, its popularity in the former East Bengal was limited. The Partition of British India saw the region fall under the new East Pakistan, and while popularity did grow, when Bangladesh declared its independence  in 1971 the region lost its first class status and it started the long journey to grow cricket as in independent nation.

 This all leads to the point in 1999 where Bangladesh, after competing limited one-day internationals for 13 years, qualifies to play in its first World Cup after winning the ICC Associate Trophy for the first time in 1997.  

 After a long journey Bangladesh were on the global stage, and while its role in the 1999 World Cup may have been small, it may have been the pivotal moment in building a cricket nation. Today it boasts Test wins against England and Australia – but a lot can be traced back to Ninety9.

 Aminul Islam, or ‘BulBul’ may not be a household name in the cricket world, but he was a veteran of Bangladesh cricket by 1999 and was charged with the duty of taking his country on to the international stage – he tells us the Bangladesh story and why Ninety9 means so much to Bangladeshi cricket.

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