Tour will be tough: Nurul
In the testing conditions of New Zealand in January 2017, Nurul Hasan scored a sparkling 47 on his Test debut. However, being a wicketkeeper, that has remained his only match in the format as he came into the side for the second Test in Christchurch only because regular wicketkeeper and then captain Mushfiqur Rahim was injured.
The talented 24-year-old, rated by many as the best gloveman in Bangladesh, has won a place in the squad for the West Indies tour, for which the Tigers are set to depart tomorrow. The picture however has changed a bit since January 2017. Chandika Hathurusingha is no longer coach, Mushfiqur is no longer captain and the trend has been to play him as a batsman only, with Liton Kumar taking the gloves in the Tests against Sri Lanka at home in January.
"These things do come to mind," Nurul told reporters after training yesterday, when asked whether it was frustrating to be left out after playing well. "But I always try to ignore these things. There is no use worrying about things that are not in my hand. The aim is always to do well whenever and wherever I get the chance."
There is reason to be frustrated. He missed out on the home Tests against Australia and Sri Lanka which could have given him a chance to prove himself as a batsman in more familiar conditions. Instead, Liton has taken his place as the number one alternative to Mushfiqur.
"I have always put the needs of the team first and I will play in whatever position the team needs," Nurul said. "To be honest, I have worked very hard on my batting and I aim to keep working on my weaknesses."
With yesterday being Bangladesh's second training session under new coach Steve Rhodes, Nurul said he did not yet see much change. "Actually everything seems the same. Maybe there are some changes in the planning. We only worked with him for two days. I don't think that the new coach is a big factor. He will have certain plans; our main aim is to do well as a team.
"All of us know that the tour will be a difficult one. It will be very challenging. We haven't done well in our last series [the 3-0 loss to Afghanistan in T20Is], but if we can give our 100 per cent something good can of course happen."
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