Pinky wins race against Joty

Fargana Hoque Pinky opened a new chapter in the country's cricket history yesterday as she became the first Bangladeshi woman cricketer to score an ODI century.

Every athlete dreams of setting a maiden record for their nation, and Pinky is no exception. However, the right-hander -- who moved up in the batting order to open the innings in the all-important fixture against India -- had an added incentive, courtesy of her captain, Nigar Sultana Joty.

"The one who sits beside me (Nigar Sultana Joty), always told me that 'I will make the century first'. I always heard it. I never replied. I always told her 'Ok, you will do it'. So, 70 to 80 per cent credit goes to her for my hundred because I wanted to show her that I would make it first," said Pinky with a grin while Joty was also smiling at the time.

Pinky further informed that her teammates always held the belief that she would be the first one to reach the landmark. Prior to her 56th ODI, she had registered nine fifties and her previous-best score was 71, made against Pakistan in Hamilton in 2022.

"I never scored [an international] hundred before but recently saw Mushfiq bhai (Mushfiqur Rahim) and Shanto bhai (Najmul Hossain) scoring two hundreds; but I scored hundred in domestic cricket," she added.

"The plan was that if I batted long, we have four-five players who can play big knocks. I always had faith in my skill. When you play a big innings against a big team, it will boost you up in future."