(Electronic Telegraph, 5 November) Defining success on a tour like England A's in Bangladesh must be a subjective exercise, using more than results as the yardstick, but Mark Alleyne's players flew out of here last night rightly content they had made an impression. Next, via stops at Singapore and Brisbane airports, England visit New Zealand for a five-week second leg offering fundamental contrasts to Bangladesh, where heat and humidity, traffic pollution, illness, pale clay pitches and boisterous crowds are part of the normal scene for touring teams.

(Bangladesh Daily Star, 5 November) Skipper Aminul Islam believes Bangladesh have gained the confidence to compete against established teams on the first class circuit. "We are not at the learning stage any more. We are playing better cricket nowadays. We have proved it with our nearly consistent performances in last few matches," said the confident captain after his team clinched a draw from a precarious position. Bangladesh have so far played nine first-class matches, of which they lost in four matches and drew the rest.

Should Bangladesh  v Eng A be given  first-class status?    93% Yes    07% No   165 votes

(Bangladesh Daily Star, 5 November) England A manager Mike Gatting thinks Bangladesh batsmen need to be more patient while playing in cricket's longer version where staying at the crease is more important than scoring runs. The stocky former England captain made this comment talking to reporters at the Bangladesh Stadium yesterday after a successful two-and-a-half-week tour of Bangladesh. The second string of England, reached the capital on October 18 and played three limited-overs matches including a practice game, a three-day match and a four-day match during their 17-day tour.