Hannan reminisces the day he defied body blows from Ntini & Co

Former Bangladesh batter Hannan Sarker reminisced a harrowing experience he had 22 years ago when he visited the Potchefstroom, South Africa.

The former opening batter of the national team is currently a selector of the under-19 team, who are in South Africa to participate in the ICC U-19 World Cup, beginning on January 19.

As the team went to the Senwes Park in Potchefstroom, Sarker was flooded with memories of his heroic batting when he stood tall and took the blows from the fearsome South African pace attack during a Test match in 2002.

A 20-year-old Sarker had scored 65 runs off 86 deliveries in the first innings – the highest of the match for the visitors – against the likes of Ntini, Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis and Nantie Hayward.

"After 22 years I am here again in Potchefstroom. I had 4 stitches in my chin (that's the dressing room) when got hit by Makhaya Ntini's ball in the 4th over. I did stitches in the lunch break (not out batting on 57*)," Sarker wrote on Facebook, with two pictures– one from the past where Ntini is pointing at the chin of Sarker that needed four stitches and another one of his latest visit to the ground.

"I can still recall that delivery as I tried to move away rather than duck under the bouncer from Ntini. I didn't realise initially when the ball hit my helmet. Later I saw blood dripping from my chin," Sarker recalled the incident to The Daily Star over phone from Potchefstroom today.

"Javed Omar bhai, who was the 12th man in the match, rushed at first and said I might need stitches but I still continued batting with a bandage. But when I returned to the dressing room at lunch, I actually needed four stitches," Sarker added.

Despite the brave effort from the young opener, Bangladesh had suffered an innings defeat in that match and Sarker was dismissed by Ntini in both innings.

"Although I am yet to meet Ntini this time around, I had the opportunity to meet Ntini back in 2021 during the road safety tournament when he joked over the incident," Sarker said, referring to the picture the two had taken back then.  .

However, the 2002 tour of South Africa were early days for Bangladesh in international cricket, and the cricketers – both seniors and juniors -- have come a long way since then.

The former opening batter oversaw the young Tigers' triumphant campaign in the U-19 Asian Cup recently and is now looking to regain the world title that Bangladesh had won in South Africa back in 2020.

Sarker said that he has relayed the incident to the members of the under-19 team, who were not even born then, to remind them of the difficulty that comes from the opposition bowlers and conditions when batting in South Africa.