Tamim Iqbal, the changemaker

It was hardly a challenge for Tamim Iqbal to set cricket as his ambition at an early age. Born and raised in a family where sports was given a lot of importance, Tamim knew the path to walk on. His father, the late Iqbal Khan was a talented footballer and sports organiser, and always had a strong influence on him. But his dream took shape of reality when his uncle Akram Khan became a national hero in 1997 through the ICC Trophy win which ensured Bangladesh's first ever appearance in the World Cup. And if that wasn't enough, a few years later Tamim saw his elder brother Nafees Iqbal make his debut for Bangladesh at the MA Aziz stadium, a Test venue located just opposite of Tamim’s residence in Chittagong. Though there was no shortage of inspiration at home for the young Tamim, to establish himself as one of the finest openers in international cricket took him some doing. And it wasn't done in a flash. Tamim has been playing for Bangladesh for nearly a decade, having made his debut in February 2007. Among Test openers during his time in international cricket, Tamim is the seventh highest scorer with 3,118 runs. Among the openers who have made more than 3,000 runs, Tamim has played the second lowest number of Tests (42) while having the fourth highest strike-rate. He is Bangladesh's highest run-getter in all three formats, currently. In 2015, Tamim struck two ODI hundreds and his maiden Test double-century, all against Pakistan. Tamim's best year in terms of total runs in Tests and ODIs was 2010, in which he struck hundreds against England and India. Tamim's journey has had many ups and downs which tested his patience and showed his ugly side. He has got into trouble on a number of occasions but to his credit, it didn't take him long to realise the mistakes. He has been quick to apologise to cricket fans whenever he knew that he had done something wrong. If 2010 and 2015 were profitable for Tamim, it was not long when he had seen the worst. In 2014 he faced a tough time on the field. More than the bad patch with the bat, it was the criticism that frustrated him. As Tamim later said, he was fine with general criticism about his batting form but what was tough to swallow was the maligning that his family had to face, particularly the theory that he was in the national team for his uncle Akram, who is a Bangladesh Cricket Board director. There were times when he reacted to questions from the media, and stopped talking to the media for large stretches too. He bounced back mightily after a tough 2015 World Cup campaign, reacting strongly after reaching a hundred in the first ODI against Pakistan in April that year. He struck a hundred in the next game, and then came along his double-century in the first Test. Tamim, who credited Jamie Siddons for his rise as an international force, listened closely to what new coach Chandika Hathurusingha had to say about him. There were many occasions when Tamim spent hours in the nets under Hathurusingha's supervision, just like Siddons had done from 2008 to 2011. Among the things that the media picked up since his 2015 comeback was his willingness to speak to the media on the day before the match. Tamim is normally very articulate but due to either superstition or to shun himself from the public, he wouldn't talk to the media on the eve of any international match. Now, he has understood that speaking to the media doesn't really matter. Those close to him have also observed some subtle changes in his character. A better sense of responsibility, patience and accepting things as they come has been noticed by many. He also said he is giving more value to his training and fitness as he gets older, which is probably another reason why he has improved as a batsman since 2015. Tamim is a food-lover and it has come naturally from the family. But with the passage of time, he started giving paramount attention to fitness. And in the last 14-15 months he was witnessed in his best shape. Given his form and renewed hunger, Tamim will remain a force that bowlers around the world will continue to work on. He will always be Bangladesh's first line of attack, when previously openers from the nation were more into defending the ball. More importantly, Tamim has changed how Bangladeshi batsmen are perceived at the international stage.