Chief selector Habibul Bashar has admitted he felt genuine relief rather than simple satisfaction watching Tanzid Hasan Tamim's maiden Test century in Darwin, conceding that a failure would have exposed the young opener to criticism that could have damaged his batting going forward.

"I say relieved because if Tanzid hadn't done well, there would have been a lot of talk about him," Bashar said.

"I have no problem listening to criticism, but it could have affected his batting. That wouldn't have been good. I was relieved that he scored runs. Now it will be good for him, he can play in his own way."

The comment reflects just how personal a call this had been for Bashar. Tanzid had played only one previous Test, against Pakistan in May, before Bashar backed him again for the tour of Australia, leaving out regular opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy in the process, a decision that drew considerable discussion within Bangladesh cricket at the time.

Bashar's faith in Tanzid dated back to his original push for the opener's Test inclusion.

"Tanzid has been in our thoughts for Test cricket. He has a very good first-class record and we felt he deserved the opportunity," Bashar had said when first selecting him ahead of the series against Pakistan.

That debut in Sylhet yielded modest returns of 26 and 4, in a match Bangladesh won by 78 runs, before Tanzid was left out of the squad for the one-off Test against Zimbabwe.

Scores of 0 and 22 in the warm-up match against a Cricket Australia XI did little to build confidence heading into the Test series, leaving the selection call looking increasingly exposed before a ball had been bowled.

Bashar, though, said he never doubted the decision privately, even as scrutiny mounted around it.

"I knew Tanzid would do well in Test cricket with the red ball. I knew it and I had faith in him. I had seen him play before, and I know his style of play. I was 100 percent confident that he would do well with the red ball too."

Tanzid repaid that faith with an innings of 101 off 197 balls, becoming the first Bangladeshi batter to score a Test century on Australian soil in what was only his second Test appearance.

The knock followed Hasan Mahmud's six-wicket haul that had restricted Australia to 198 in the first innings, and helped carry Bangladesh to a substantial total of 426.

Bashar was just as effusive about the team's performance as a whole, rating it above even Bangladesh's previous landmark away win.

"However you look at it, this is a huge win. We have had several big wins. But this one is different. The Test win in New Zealand was also a big one. It's a difficult place too. But this is completely different. We won this match by playing well in every department. Good batting, good fielding, good bowling. Everyone helped each other. Spinners, pacers, batters, we played unbelievably well."

Asked about a possible bonus for the squad, Bashar brushed the question aside entirely.

"I don't know exactly about the bonus. We were a little too busy celebrating. Since it's such a win, you would want to celebrate a little. Whatever the board does is up to them. The board may do something later. But after a win like this, you actually don't need anything else. If you ask me, I'm happy just getting a win like this. I don't need anything else."

Bangladesh went on to seal a historic nine-wicket victory, chasing down a target of just 57 after bowling Australia out for 284 in their second innings, despite a Cameron Green century for the hosts. Bashar believes the result carries significance well beyond the scoreline.

"This is certainly a message from Bangladesh cricket. I don't know whether the Australians will invite us again, but Bangladesh cricket has delivered its message to them: we are not the Bangladesh of the past anymore. Now we know how to win, and we can beat you too."