It was yet another heartache for Bangladesh as they lost to India in the Asia Cup final in the very last ball in Dubai.
But one man performed brilliantly in all aspects throughout the tournament, and inspired the whole team to perform against all odds. And it was none other than the captain himself, Mashrafe bin Mortaza.
Mashrafe has crossed another milestone this tournament by becoming the first Bangladeshi to get 250 ODI wickets against Pakistan in the Super Four match. He is currently the highest wicket-taker for Bangladesh in ODIs with 251 wickets, and has been the most successful and consistent bowler for the Tigers in the last few years in limited-overs cricket.
Mashrafe started his career against Zimbabwe in 2001, and passed 17 eventful years in his international career. There were many ups and downs in his career as injury almost ended it in 2011.
In the first 10 years of his career, he had seven major operations in both his legs. At one stage, it seemed his international career was over during 2010 as he was struggling with major injuries.
"We have the challenge to play like the way we played in the #AsiaCup2018" – Mashrafe Mortaza is cautious about the Zimbabwe challenge.
— ICC (@ICC) October 21, 2018
READ ⬇️https://t.co/4irRfrVpGh pic.twitter.com/jRMAjVD10F
He was not picked in the 2011 World Cup where Bangladesh were the co-host. But later, the way Mashrafe came back and proved himself to be vital for the national team in limited-overs cricket was nothing short of remarkable. It was like the rising of a phoenix.
During the 2011 World Cup, it seemed Mashrafe’s career was over, but the reality now is that Mashrafe is on the verge of leading the team to the 2019 World Cup. It’s a remarkable turnaround.
And he is not only a member of the team, he is the most influential captain Bangladesh have ever produced, and also the most consistent pace bowler for the Tigers over the past few years.
Mashrafe can’t be counted only by the number of his wickets as he will be remembered in the history of Bangladesh as a great leader, and a charismatic captain on and off the field. Mashrafe has to be given a lot of credit behind Bangladesh cricket team’s transformation.
When he took over the ODI captaincy role back in 2014, the team were struggling, and failed to match the expectation against any opponent in the international circuit.
Career Statistics of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza#BCB #Tigers #Tigersprofile pic.twitter.com/ShHEUgHQbY
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) October 11, 2018
The expectation on Mashrafe was to make the team gel ahead of the 2015 World Cup, and bring back the confidence. But what Mashrafe and Co did after that was quite magnificent. They reached the quarter-final of the 2015 World Cup by knocking England out.
Later, they won the home series against Asian powerhouses like India and Pakistan and also against South Africa, and built themselves as an extremely competitive side in the 50-over format, anywhere in the world.
The recent example of Mashrafe’s influence was evident is the West Indies series, which was held prior to the Asia Cup. The Tigers were humiliated in the first Test match against the Caribbean and later lost the Test series comprehensively.
But in the ODI series, under the captaincy of Mashrafe, Bangladesh turned around magnificently as they almost won the series 3-0, but eventually had to settle for a 2-1 triumph.
With the momentum, Bangladesh also won the T20I series against the former world champion. It was not only the captain Mashrafe, he performed well with the ball and bat as well.
Elder brother, an idol, Motivator; Mashrafe Mortaza bhai means a lot to me. He turns 35 today. Wishing him a very 'Happy Birthday'. Be blessed always bhai. ? pic.twitter.com/rDYAdgc00W
— Mustafizur Rahman (@Mustafiz90) October 5, 2018
Bangladesh faced many challenges in this Asia Cup. One of their best and in-form batsman Tamim Iqbal was out injured in the tournament opener, Mushfiqur Rahim was batting with a rib injury, Shakib al Hasan was playing with injury before being ruled out of the competition.
The conditions were extreme as Bangladesh had to play in the heat and humidity of Dubai and Abu Dhabi within a short period of time over and over again. But most importantly, the captain himself motivated the whole team all along.
Even the Asia Cup experts and analysts praised Mashrafe as a player and captain and Ramiz Raja termed him “captain of the tournament”.
Everybody knows Tamim’s heroics when he went out to bat with his fracture hand at No 11 against Sri Lanka. Tamim formed a valiant 32-run partnership with Mushfiq in the end, that proved vital and eventually Sri Lanka lost the game.
Later Tamim informed that Mashrafe inspired him to do such heroics by constantly saying “You can do it” and that really pumped up Tamim to do such heroics for the nation. Definitely credit goes to Tamim for his brave move, but Mashrafe was the driving force behind it.
#Saifuddin prepared to fill big #Mashrafe boots https://t.co/euxu0B7KT9
— DhakaTribune (@DhakaTribune) October 18, 2018
And in the latter part of the tournament, before facing India in the final, when journalists asked Mashrafe whether Bangladesh could win the Asia Cup or not, Mashrafe replied, “When Tamim went out to bat with a broken hand, he won the Asia Cup for me”.
That’s the confident voice of a charismatic leader who can inspire a team with such attitude. Even in the crunch match against Pakistan, when the team were struggling at one stage, Mashrafe took a stunning catch diving to his left.
That was an absolutely brilliant effort from a man who had seven operations in both his legs. That was the turning point of the match and that effort from the captain inspired the team and eventually Bangladesh won. That’s a small example how Mashrafe encouraged the team often.
So after claiming 250 wickets, another milestone for Bangladesh, what was the reaction from the captain himself? He said, “Milestones don’t attract me anymore. I just play for the team, for the nation, and for the country.”
Mashrafe is unique. Even at the age of 35, he is irreplaceable in the Bangladesh ODI team. There will be many great cricketers playing for Bangladesh in future but Mashrafe will be Mashrafe. He will always be considered unique.
And he will be considered as an example for the upcoming generation for a long time due to his dedication and selfless effort for Bangladesh, on and off the cricket field.
