Former Bangladesh ODI captain Mashrafe bin Mortaza was the center of attention at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium Thursday as the veteran cricketer took to the center wicket nets to guide right-arm pacer Taskin Ahmed with some bowling tips.
Mashrafe has been away from the field since the Bangabandhu T20 Cup in December last year.
A current Member of Parliament, Mashrafe arrived in Mirpur in the afternoon and was seen sharing tips with Taskin, a member of the Bangladesh squad for the T20 World Cup, set to begin in Oman and the UAE on October 17.
“I requested Mashrafe bhai to give me some time in the nets. I have been improving in pace and swing but not much in the slower delivery. So he took some time off from his busy schedule and showed me some grips for the slower delivery,” informed Taskin to the media Thursday.
“He showed me some grips including that of cutters but said I cannot work on all of it at the same time because we have a tight schedule ahead. I will need to learn it one by one. At the moment I am trying to focus on cutters. Hope these learnings will help me in the coming days.
“My strength is in pace and bounce and this [slower] will add as another option. Mashrafe bhai told me to try the new grips only if I am comfortable. It will take some time but being able to learn these will surely help me,” he added.
Most successful ODI captain for Bangladesh, Mashrafe last played an international in March 2020 against Zimbabwe, the series in which he had stepped down as the captain.
The right-arm pacer soon lost his place in the national dressing room as the selection panel deemed the cricketer’s fitness to be not up to the mark.