Dav Whatmore's official two-year contract to coach Bangladesh and attempt, somehow, to turn around their dire fortunes does not begin until June.

But he is due to arrive in Dhaka on Monday for a five-day fact-finding visit in which he will meet 21 of Bangladesh's top players.

It is understood Whatmore will be given a bonus for each and every victory he can attain for the side, whether in Test cricket or one-day internationals.

That is the extent of the Bangladesh Cricket Board's desperation to achieve something nearly two-and-a-half years after gaining Test status.

WHATMORE'S RECORD PLAYER Victoria 1975-89 6116 first-class runs at 33.97 Australia 1978-80 7 Tests: 293 runs at 22.53 1 ODI: 2 runs COACH Sri Lanka 1995-96 World Cup 1996 Lancashire 1997-99 NatWest Trophy, National League 1998 Sri Lanka 1999-2003 Asian Test Championship 2002 Nine consecutive Test wins 2001-02 World Cup semi-finalists 2003

Bangladesh have lost 18 of 19 Tests, their only draw coming in a weather-affected draw against Zimbabwe. They have also not won a one-dayer in nearly four years.

Whatmore, 49, will almost certainly be the highest-paid of the seven coaches Bangladesh have employed since 1990.

He will collect $100,000 dollars a year plus other benefits.

One former coach Gordon Greenidge said Bangladesh were never ready for Test status when it first came. He was right.

Former South Africa batsman Eddie Barlow led the side in the build-up to their first Test, until a brain haemorrhage left him unable to continue in the role.

In the end it was Sarwar Imran who was in charge when the hosts gained some credit from a loss to India in their inaugural Test.

After him came Australian Trevor Chappell, dismissed after claims of a language barrier between him and the team, and Pakistani Mohsin Kamal, who was sacked after the World Cup.

Sri Lanka were not in quite such a dire position when Whatmore became coach in 1995, but he was the man responsible for dragging them into cricket's mainstream.

There are some boys there who have got some real talent Whatmore on Bangladesh

Colombo-born but Australia-bred, Whatmore combined a thoroughly modern approach to the game with a natural affinity for the players.

A revolutionary approach to batting, using the explosive talents at the side's disposal, brought victory in the 1996 World Cup.

And it was an indicator of how far the side had come that a loss in the 2003 semi-finals was seen as failure by the fans at home.

Whatmore can concentrate purely on Bangladesh now.

"You will agree that there are some boys there who have got some real talent," he said when first appointed.

"But to bring that talent out on a consistent basis, and get supporting talent from other players, will take a little bit of time.

"I feel they have more of a defeatist attitude than anything else. What we need to do is change that base attitude before anything else happens."

Sri Lanka are still not an unqualified success - Whatmore admits their performance away from home was a bugbear for him.

But their ability to move from international also-rans to the top echelon suggests a light at the end of the tunnel for the newest Test nation.