Tigers discover a few Test stripes
In October 2017, when Bangladesh were conceding huge totals in exchange for a few token wickets that were more batting errors than bowling inspiration, South African pace legend Allan Donald had said that the Tigers lacked creativity when trying to bowl sides out or break partnerships in Tests.
When asked what he meant, Donald had said: "It's being able to reverse the ball from over and around, setting really silly fields... just so the batsmen never second-guesses you in what you are trying to do."
About 13 months later, on the back of a series of forgettable Test performances and with their backs to the wall after losing the first Test against Zimbabwe in Sylhet, Bangladesh found that spark on the third day of the first Test at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday. Stand-in skipper Mahmudullah Riyad came up with some innovative fields as Bangladesh bowled out the fighting Zimbabweans for 304 at the end of the day, securing a 218-run first-innings lead.
While left-arm spinner Taijul Islam led the bowling effort with his third successive five-wicket haul and Mehedi Hasan Miraz finished with three scalps, it was a complete bowling performance that helped the hosts snuff out a Zimbabwe rearguard powered by a 139-run sixth-wicket partnership between centurion Brendan Taylor and Peter Moor.
Not least in that effort were the two pacers -- Mustafizur Rahman and debutant fast bowler Khaled Ahmed -- who were desperately unlucky to remain wicket-less. And it is with them in operation that Mahmudullah's imagination went into overdrive, or 'silly', as Donald would put it. The first funky field set was in the sixth over of the day -- the 25th of the innings -- when he brought in Liton Das, along with Mithun Das, one of Bangladesh's spare wicketkeepers, when Mushfiqur Rahim dons the gloves, into a gully so close that he needed a helmet to be safe. It was occasioned by the left-handed Mustafizur swinging the ball away from Brian Chari from around the wicket and some edges falling well short of regulation gully.
It almost worked as Chari edged just to the left of Liton who, in spite of his sharper-than-average reflexes, could not dive in time.
A lively Khaled, meanwhile, was constructing one of the more impressive pace debuts for Bangladesh in Test cricket. He bowled with considerable aggression throughout the innings, softening up Chari twice with bouncers that hit the helmet, the second one in the 30th over requiring prolonged medical attention. Off the next ball, Chari was dropped for the second time off the same bowler -- two of five missed chances that will remain the only big blemish of the hosts' performance on the field.
During his spell with the old ball in the second session, Khaled was getting consistent reverse swing and troubling both set batsmen. That prompted the skipper to bring in leg gully, another ploy that almost worked as in the 66th over Moor inside-edged tantalisingly close to the fielder. Perhaps anticipating the release shot off a wide delivery from the occasionally wayward Khaled, Mahmudullah positioned a fly slip in the pacer's next over.
That fielder was not utilised but followers of the Bangladesh team, whose innovations at home are usually tailored to spinners, would have been encouraged by the imagination displayed by a captain even in the middle of a burgeoning partnership.
The five dropped catches and Zimbabwe's eventual capitulation reminded watchers that it is a contest between two lower-ranked sides. However, after Zimbabwe's stirring show in Sylhet and with the Tigers discovering a few of their Test stripes, the bigger reminder was of how good a Test match can be when contested by two sides using all of their brains and brawns in order to win.