Shashi Tharoor Mistakenly Writes ‘Austria’ Instead Of Australia While Congratulating Bangladesh; Clarifies With 'Autocorrect' Joke

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor congratulated Bangladesh after their historic Test victory over Australia in Darwin, but his post initially contained a geographical mix-up. In a post on social media, Tharoor wrote that Bangladesh had “beaten Austria in Darwin” while praising the team for what he called the “greatest victory in their Test history”. He described Bangladesh’s performance as “doughty, heartwarming and ultimately triumphant” and congratulated the neighbouring country.

Tharoor later corrected the mistake, pointing out that Bangladesh had beaten Australia, not Austria. He added a humorous explanation, saying he was in Hamburg for the weekend and “maybe even autocorrect had a geographical bias”. The clarification quickly drew attention to the original typo, adding a lighter moment to his congratulatory message.

Bangladesh completed one of the most stunning upsets in men’s Test cricket history on Sunday by thrashing top-ranked Australia by nine wickets in the series opener at Marrara Oval on Sunday. The victory marked Bangladesh’s first-ever Test win on Australian soil in only their third attempt, especially coming after their first red-ball appearance in the country in 23 years. Najmul Hossain Shanto’s men arrived as overwhelming underdogs after suffering an innings defeat to a Cricket Australia XI, including being bowled out for 54.