Bangladesh can't be taken lightly - Siddons

Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, has said his team's recent run of success has earned it the respect of top international sides though it is far from the finished product. Bangladesh won their first overseas Test series by beating West Indies 2-0 and emerged victorious in three consecutive ODI series.

"We all know that we have a long way to go to be classed as a real threat to the top four teams but they will no longer take us lightly," Siddons told Tigercricket.com. "If nothing else I hope that all of those who saw fit to criticise this team of young cricketers can now admit that there is definite signs of us improving and that we are on the right track for big things in the future. Young players take time to mature and gain confidence at this level and we have now taken a major step forward."

Bangladesh took on a makeshift West Indies team after its senior players had boycotted the Test series due to a contractual dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board. Shakib Al Hasan, who captained Bangladesh after Mashrafe Mortaza was injured in the first Test, led by example for the rest of the series but it remains to be seen if he'll be retained as captain once Mortaza is back. The highlight was a match-winning century in the second Test in Grenada that sealed the series.

"Shakib's captaincy was successful although at times his youth was tested and his patience with others of lesser ability in his team tested," Siddons said. "He led magnificently with his own performance throughout the tour and I think won three or four man of the match awards and man of the series as well."

Siddons added that his players had trained hard to adapt to Test cricket and their efforts bore fruit on the tour of West Indies. Going in to the two-Test series, Bangladesh had lost 52 of their 59 Tests and recorded a solitary win against Zimbabwe in 2005. The technical adjustments made to their batting, added to their spin-centric bowling attack, proved crucial to their success, Siddons said.

"Teams are truly judged on how they perform in the longer version as there is no place to hide and if you don't play well for the five days then you will lose," he said. "We have been preparing for Test cricket the whole time. I have been involved with batsmen practicing the skills required to both survive and succeed, mostly handling the short ball and also being prepared and skillful enough to leave the danger ball outside off stump and wait for the bowler to bowl a bad ball.

Our focus on spin bowling and including many allrounders in our team was a bonus as we had many options in the spin department to back up the pure class of Shakib, the best allrounder in the world."

Siddons acknowledged that his team's chances of winning increased significantly due to the absence of West Indies' senior players but he pointed out that Bangladesh weren't fielding a full-strength team either. The ICL had recruited many of their established players, who, upon being granted amnesty by their board, have to wait until December 31 before making a return to international cricket.

"Of course the fact that some of the established West Indies players went on strike when we arrived made our chances of winning a lot more realistic and possible," he said. "I believe that the players though still very young and on the whole very inexperienced, have just shown the wisdom and improvement that comes with time. They have all been together in the team for over 12 months since the departure of a number of players to the ICL, which has been quickly forgotten by many when judging our team. This group is gaining more and more confidence at this level and will continue to improve as time goes on."

Bangladesh face a hectic schedule. They start with a series against Zimbabwe in October before taking on Sri Lanka and India, touring New Zealand, playing a home and away series against England and staying on for the ICC World Twenty20 in May next year. The time and effort he and his team have invested in raising their standards in international cricket, Siddons said, should help Bangladesh improve in areas where they still need to catch up. "We know we have room for improvement in areas such as fielding and in many other departments, however all of this will take time and can not be solved by words or criticism but will be solved by hard work and commitment, both of which this group of players have vowed to continue," he said. "I am excited and my experience with the Australian team tells me that our players are on track to becoming a very competitive team."