In numbers: Why Bangladesh’s historic win over Australia is bigger than it looks

On Sunday, Bangladesh achieved a historic win over Australia by nine wickets in Darwin, marking their first Test victory on Australian soil after a 23-year wait. This significant result exceeded statistical significance and highlighted Bangladesh's remarkable progress in cricket. The victory came as a culmination of exceptional individual performances.

Hasan Mahmud set the tone with the ball, Tanzid Tamim contributed significantly with the bat, Najmul Hossain Shanto made crucial runs, and Mehidy Hasan Miraz sealed the win with the ball.

Bangladesh's ability to triumph in Australia stands out due to their poor performance in the previous two Tests there, both resulting in heavy defeats in 2003. Their return to the country after two decades of defeat on Australian soil was a testament to their growing cricket prowess. This win also ended a remarkable run for Australia, who hadn't lost a home Test to an Asian team other than India since 1995, making Bangladesh the first Asian side outside India to accomplish this in 31 years.

The nine-wicket victory is Bangladesh's second-largest by wickets, only surpassed by their 10-wicket win over Pakistan in Rawalpindi in 2024. This result is a remarkable transformation for Bangladesh, as their only other Test win in the traditional SENA countries (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) was against New Zealand in 2022. Their second Test victory over Australia comes after their first win in Mirpur in 2017, further cementing their growing dominance in Test cricket.