A nineteen year old lanky teenager with an innocent look mingles among the crowd, spends time with his friends and family somewhere in Satkhira, a district in the south-west of Bangladesh that one hardly knows much about. Clueless as to where a cricket ball could take him, he picks up the game aided by his brother’s belief and takes the pain of traveling long miles to get some practice sessions or a game of cricket. Hard work and self-belief pays off as he breaks through into the BCB pace bowlers development program and from there on, his growth has been gradual but full of conviction. He represents his nation in the Under-19 World Cup in 2014 and then works his way into the Bangladesh “A” team. He is still one among many faces in the passionate field of cricket in Bangladesh. Then the lights of Dhaka Mirpur Stadium sparkle on him which in turn lights up the entire nation. A mesmerising spell follows and he becomes the centrefold of Bangladesh’s colourful map.
What was simply a face in the crowd two months ago soon stormed its way into every household, not only in Bangladesh but, internationally as well. International cricket first saw him in the one-off T20I against the visiting Pakistan team in April of this year. A surprise and bold selection, this lanky, unassuming left-arm seamer bowled a magical spell of four overs with 15 dot balls and picked up two wickets in the process. “The Spitting Cobra from Satkhira” had arrived.
Held back in the only Test match against the Indians, and rightfully so, he was brought back into the fray in the ODI series against the visitors. With an element of surprise strongly backed with uncanny accuracy, way beyond his tender teenage years, he made the much daunted Indian batting line up appear quite ordinary. He bowled in every crucial phase of each match including the death overs with the same accuracy and sting. A remarkable presentation of confidence and maturity makes his 19-year old body a pleasant contrast to his sharp mind which is more like that of an experienced 30-year old. Some may even wonder if he has gone through a brain transplant.
Mustafizur Rahman may be the most talked about cricketer in the sub-continent today. While Bangladesh is euphoric with his talent, the Indians are bemoaning their loss to Mustafizur more than Bangladesh itself as he single handedly won the series for Bangladesh. Over three ODIs they could not tame this young man as he controlled the Indian batters similar to that of a puppeteer controlling the strings.
Comparisons have already started with some of the greats. Some have compared him to Wasim Akram, perhaps the all time best left-arm fast bowler the world has seen. Realistically, his quality today at this age is probably better than what Akram’s was when he was at nineteen. Others, while rating him high, would like to wait and see how far he goes in a couple of years, especially when he starts to play abroad in conditions that may be alien to him. His 13-wicket haul in the 3-match ODI series is a world record. When he took 11 wickets in the first two he broke that of Brian Vitori of Zimbabwe whose record of 10 wickets came against Bangladesh in 2011. It is a certainty that Mustafizur’s progress will be keenly followed by all. The lad is a genuine article and his potential is huge primarily because he has two positive aspects to his bowling. Accuracy and variation, a rare combination in a quick bowler, makes him a strong case to become a potential leader of fast men in world cricket. Having penned this, there is a huge amount of work that he and his support staff must seriously plan for.
There have been many headline making starters that faded away in no time. Cricket is different today than what it was some twenty years ago. Today it is all about technology and in no time will Mustafizur’s bowling be looked at, dissected, and his mystery unlocked by all opposition. I bet you the next team set to visit Bangladesh (South Africa) has already started working on this. Soon enough, he will no longer be a mystery. The Indians changed their plans for him in the 3rd ODI. Although they were never at ease, they managed to keep him on a leash and prevented him from running away with the match. Vitori got 10 wickets in his first two ODIs in 2011. As of today, in 17 ODIs he has a total of 24 wickets, i.e., in 15 ODIs, he has taken a total of 14 wickets averaging less than one per match. Mustafizur and the BCB need to ensure that he does not become another Vitori.
First and foremost, he needs to be mentored with the utmost care. With his overnight fame, he is the ideal target for those that can easily lead him astray. There are thousands that will try to use his fame to benefit themselves. The BCB needs to step in and manage him well, which must be based on a strong moral and ethical platform. Secondly, he needs to beef up a bit and elevate his speed. At 135 km, he will find it tough to get the better batters out once they have read him, which most will sooner than later. Sometimes, what guile cannot accomplish, speed can. If Mustafizur can bump up his speed to the 140 km plus range, he will become extraordinarily lethal anywhere in the world. There are very few fast bowlers that can bowl the cutters that he delivers. This is a tremendous plus point for him. With his enhanced speed, the option of getting wickets would increase many fold as the yorker and the bouncer would come into play. Needless to mention, without the speed, his threat will be greatly diminished on pitches abroad.
Regardless of where he ends up in the future, in a span of two weeks, this young lad from Satkhira has given the nation and Bangladeshis all across the globe ample reason to identify themselves as a proud cricketing nation second to none.