Bangladesh Cricket Board going the ECB way?

Andy Bull of The Guardian and Cricketsoccer’s Suraj have nailed ECB’s idea of 100-ball cricket. I have lost my respect for Andrew Strauss and I still could not understand how a former Test cricketer and successful captain could come up with such a rubbish idea? He is talking crap about this 100-ball format.

Meanwhile, in Bangladesh, Bangladesh Cricket Board isplanning the same like ECB. Well, Akram Khan had been a very impactful cricketer in the history of Bangladesh cricket, but the problem occurs when he opens his mouth and comes up with ridiculous ideas. I ask, as a Test nation what have Bangladesh achieved in these 18 years? Does Bangladesh need to implement a rubbish idea like 100-ball cricket?

Nations like West Indies and Bangladesh are shifting heavily towards these jokes of a format and in Bangladesh they have a bunch of paid-people from media to support such acts. An Andy Bull is a rarity in Bangladesh. That’s why a two-tier system is needed to teach a lesson to those who don’t take Test cricket seriously.

Whatever Bangladesh have gained through cricket is all because of that coveted Test status. They are needed to be reminded that fact in a very strict manner. 

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

Arsene Wenger is more than just a soccer coach

The era of George Graham came to a sad end and his replacement Bruce Rioch also failed to cut the mustard. Arsenal decided to appoint a French man working in Japan. His name was Arsene Wenger. He started his journey as “Arsene who?” but gradually, he became the ultimate boss of a club whose players  ate steak and chips before the game and drank pints of beer afterwards and the club, Arsenal, had a cramped stadium and a training ground shared with a university sports club.

Wenger changed everything as soon as he arrived at Arsenal. "An array of French and Francophone footballers were brought in to enliven the midfield and attack. Solid British bulldogs were introduced to the joys of steamed broccoli and yoga. State of the art facilities were installed at London Colney and eventually a state of the art stadium became Arsenal’s new home".

I still remember a heading in Bangladesh Observer twenty-two years back saying “Boring, boring Arsenal,” but within a few years, that French man would rejuvenate the club into crowd pullers and the toast of a new generation of football fans.  

I am sad today. It’s pretty hard to believe, Arsene won’t be associated with the club on which he had a huge impact.  Arsene is not just a manager but more than that – an institution and a role model for many.

I also have that fear, Arsene might leave football forever. No, this can’t be! This man should not leave football and still, football needs his knowledge and integrity. He must be in FIFA on a bigger post.   

Thank You
Faisal Caesar

The favourites of Dhaka crowd

The people of Dhaka love relishes street foods. They love their evening adda. They love their family. They love to criticise the politicians. And they cannot live without worshipping their cricketing heroes.

The days when soccer dominated in Dhaka

Somewhere in the mid 80s, life in Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh, came to a standstill. For the last couple of days, Dhaka already transformed into a festive city. Two arch rivals in club football, Abahani and Mohammedan Sporting Club would log horns in the final of a football tournament and it triggered a massive euphoria among the fans of capital city. The buildings were glorified with the flags of both teams and even the rickshaw driver was seen to drive his rickshaw with the flag of his favourite team wrapped in his body – buying a jersey was not as easy as today in those days.

The destination was the Dhaka National Stadium, now the Bangabandhu National Stadium (BNS).  Inside the stadium, the scenes were eye-popping. Such a large stadium was not enough to hold the pressure of a partition crowd. The stadium was jam-packed as if the whole of Dhaka had gathered to greet their heroes. The noise was unbelievable. In fact, it was not just a mere noise, but the music of a sports carnival which scripted a beautiful bond between each and every person of Dhaka.

In those days, soccer was the ultimate sports in Bangladesh and in Dhaka, any football tournaments were celebrated with a dash. The sights of a Sheikh Salahuddin, Lutfar Rahman Binu, Monim Munna, Kaiser Hamid, Sabbir, Kanon or Sheikh Aslam would drive the fans crazy. Without a doubt, they were the favourites of Dhaka crowd and were demi-gods in this part of the world. They were the stars whom the young fans worshipped and always wished to emulate.

But sadly, the dawn of the 90s witnessed the end of the golden days of soccer in Bangladesh and in Dhaka, elite sports named cricket would become the heart and soul of each and everyone. At present, cricket is the game of mass in Bangladesh. Neither BNS would remain as the centre of sporting carnival in Dhaka nor Kaiser Hamid or Munna would remain as the heroes anymore, but a new stadium named Shere Bangla National Stadium at Mirpur would become the destination of sports carnival in Dhaka and a bunch of fearless kids would bear the tag of Tigers.

It’s a pity, soccer failed to keep pace with cricket’s dynamic progress. There had been many conspiracy theories about soccer’s downfall in Bangladesh, but if one does not upgrade and brand the sports appropriately, a downfall is evident.

But let me not waste time on soccer’s sorry state in Bangladesh, but I would like to focus on the main topic. I wish that the respective officials of Bangladesh soccer, maintain their ethics to revive the sports in this region. That’s all. Let not elaborate more.

The Dhaka crowd is special

It is always said, Bangladesh owes a lot to the crowd of Dhaka for developing a certain sporting culture, which helped to push Bangladesh’s motto in achieving the coveted Test status to a greater extent. I am focusing more on Dhaka as because this city of mosques and colorful people has always been the centre of major international events and if any crowd deserve a big hurrah for their warm and friendly attitude then it should be Dhaka’s one.

Of course, being a Dhakaities since birth, I have had the privilege to witness the heroes and crowd favourites of Dhaka.

In the good old days, in any sporting events, the BNS was always seen filled to the brim – the crowd always cheered for the neutral teams, which used to send a wonderful message about the hospitality of Bangladesh across the globe. The Dhaka crowd is ruled more by emotions and friendliness rather than facts. It not only supports the great teams, but also bear the history of rooting for underdogs.  They love and respect the great players, but when others thirst for their approval, they don’t shy away from pouring their love for them. Yes, I cannot deny about some of the ugly incidents, but the amount of passion and love displayed by the Dhaka crowd makes those incidents irrelevant.

Like the crowds in Mumbai, Lahore or Colombo, Dhaka has its own favourite sons. The heroes which the crowd in Dhaka worship and goes crazy whenever they are sighted. It’s a love story between a massive crowd and a particular player, which cannot be expressed in just a few words.

The favourites of early days

Even during the days of soccer extravaganza, the crowd at Dhaka cheered for their favourite cricket stars as well.  One of them was Yousuf Babu, who was one of the beloved ones of Dhaka crowd. Babu was well known for his aggressive stroke-play and of course, any crowd would love to relish the sixes and fours more rather than a typically composed knock. A mass crowd is not always filled with the purists of the game and thus, Babu’s attacking instincts were always a treat for the people present at BNS. At times, he would even surpass the aura of Raquibul Hassan. Certainly, Babu’s name echoed around small cricketing fraternity of Dhaka.

The glory of Babu started to wane and it was replaced by a bloke named Gazi Ashraf Hossain aka Lipu. As a matter of fact,  Lipu had a huge impact amid the soccer mania of the 80s. As a batsman, he was well-equipped to face the best of attacks and he could round his arms as well when it was needed.  Moreover, as a fielder, he could be regarded as one of the finest in the history of Bangladesh cricket.

The aspect of Lipu’s batsmanship, which made him a crowd favourite was his ability to chip in with some important knocks for his club Abahani. Time and again, Abahani were bailed out by Lipu’s innings-during-crisis and the next day, a photo Lipu with moustache would claim a place among the big names of Bangladesh soccer in national dailies.

Very soon, three young cricketers named; Mihazul Abedin, Aminul Islam and Akram Khan would carry on the legacy of Lipu and would become the beloved ones of the Dhaka crowd in late 80s and whole of 90s. Minhazul’s courage, Aminul’s composure and Akram’s dam-care batting would help Bangladesh cricket to progress a lot.

You know, the Dhaka crowd loved them a lot and these guys used to attract a lot of people to watch cricket in the late 80s and early 90s. Three of them witnessed the rise and fall of a cricketing nation, whose journey was not rosy. Three of them relished the advancement of Bangladesh cricket and certainly, Bangladesh cricket will be indebted to these three for a long time to come.

Ashraful, Rafique and Aftab Ahmed

The coveted Test status was achieved on November 10, 2000. It dawned a new beginning in the history of Bangladesh cricket. New heroes emerged to overshadow the old ones and cricket won’t remain just a game for a Bangladeshi.

Amid the heavy defeats and mind-boggling cricketing displays, Mohammad Ashraful and Mohammad Rafique rose above the rest to win the hearts of people of Dhaka and whole Bangladesh. They represented the struggles of a working-class group who would break down sweat day in and day out to bloom a smile on the faces of their family members. Even in a defeat, a fan would leave the stadium with a smile on his face as because, either Rafique bagged two or three wickets or smashed a quickfire knock as a tail-ender or Ashraful took the opposition bowlers to the cleaners with his scintillating stroke-play.

Aftab Ahmed joined the party in the earlier part of the last decade and boy, he was extremely loved by the people of Dhaka. He was an admixture of Akram and Aminul Islam. Like Akram, he could murder the attack in the twinkle of an eye and under pressure, you would invest in him like you did in case of Aminul Islam. A few years later, a bloke named Shahriar Nafees would become the darling of Dhaka. But both Aftab and Nafees lost their mojo with the progress of time.

Mashrafe the Boss

Until now, very few would be able to challenge the aura of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza aka Mash. His love and affair with the Dhaka crowd and whole of Bangladesh is almost two decades long and day by day the love and respect towards Mash are only increasing. Dhaka witnessed Mash as a rookie in 2001 and from the first ball he bowled in Test cricket, he became the hero of Dhaka.

The first sight of Mashrafe created a lot buzz in Dhaka. None of us in Dhaka ever witnessed any bowler bowl with such a deceptive pace on the cricket field. The determination in his eyes and extraordinary fearless body language became the hot cake in no time. The time for idiolising the foreign cricketers was over and it was time to fill the wall of your bedroom with the poster of Mash.

For Dhaka and Bangladesh, Mash is the symbol of courage and the ideal person to emulate. Or him each and every fan is equal. He never says ‘no’ to any fan, but his “jaadu ka jhappi”(magical hug) is for all. Even if a crowd escapes the tighter security to enter the field, Mash would not allow the security guards to take sterner steps towards him, but he would accept his hug and calm down the situation. This is the scenario wherever Mash goes to play or attend a social function.

This is Mash for you and for the people of Dhaka, Mash is special, as his bond with this crowd is the oldest of all – a story of sheer love and emotion.

Shakib Al Hasan, the ultimate love

But even the aura of Mash could come under threat in Dhaka. You know, there is one bloke named Shakib Al Hasan, who could overshadow the persona – Mashrafe - in no time.  The guy is a flawed genius. He is disliked once and then he forces one to love him again. It’s an interesting cycle, which has started since the latter part of last decade and is still on. Over the years, this cycle of love and dislike have become a part and parcel of Dhaka crowd.

As soon as a fan starts to criticise Shakib harshly, the maestro would dish out an eye-popping display to earn the love and respect of Dhaka in no time. Even, you cannot but fall in love with Shakib’s whims and arrogance. His argument with the opposition players or umpires or whims off the field give the journos a scope to slice this man, but for a fan, it’s not all about slicing him. It’s about earning that sheer amount of gung-ho and daring attitude, which is needed to survive in this critical world of cricket. But a Dhaka fan never wants Shakib to be ugly.

From a personal point of view, Shakib is the ultimate love of Dhaka crowd and he takes it to a different level. He not only earn the accolades of crowd, but he engages the whole crowd with him as well. His salute to Ben Stokes and ‘aeroplane’ celebration against England and Australia involved the whole of Dhaka. As if the whole of Dhaka was celebrating with Shakib. Well, in fact, the whole of Bangladesh was behind Shakib.

New heroes are emerging in Bangladesh cricket. Cricketers like Mustafizur Rahman and Mehidy Hasan Miraz are the new toasts of this cricket crazy nation, but still, they are yet to script the ultimate love story with the Dhaka crowd.

One day either one of them or someone else will overtake the mantle from Shakib and Mashrafe but at present, the love story of Dhaka crowd with Shakib and Mashrafe would continue.

Note: This article has been published at Cricketsoccer on 20/04/2018 The favourites of Dhaka crowd

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

CS Flashback: The heart-stopping contest at Durban

“Imagine a winning run off the last-ball in a Test match via a leg-bye and it has happened just once in the history of Test cricket”.

The atmosphere was absolutely electrifying at Kingsmead, Duban. Under the fading light and incessant drizzle, one of Test cricket’s most thrilling finishes took place way back in 1948. With three balls left and England’s ninth-wicket pair out in the middle, any one of four results remained possible, with a draw or a tie as much on the cards as a victory for either side, the unforgettable match was eventually decided off the last ball.

The summer of 1948 didn’t go pretty well for England. Don Bradman in his last Test series bludgeoned the English, which in turn dented their self-confidence to a great extent.

England flew to South Africa in search of confidence and team spirit.

A year earlier, England had defeated South Africa comprehensively on home soil and were again favourites to clinch the rubber. But how well England can recover from the heavy defeat against Australia remained a moot question. This was England’s first tour to South Africa for ten years.

The first Test was played at Kingsmead, Durban.

It was a four-day affair.

There had been three debutantes both from England and South Africa in this Test match, including England’s captain George Mann, whose father, Frank had also led England in a Test series in South Africa 26 years back. South Africa were captained by Dudley Nourse in the absence of regular skipper Alan Melville, who was ruled out due to an injury.

Bedser and Gladwin halt South Africa’s progress on Day 1

Dudley Nourse won the toss and, aware of the thunderstorm forecast on the second day, elected to bat on a track which was, to say at least, unpredictable. The humid atmosphere was suitable for swing bowling and thus, Alec Bedser and Clifford Gladwin’s bowling proved lethal and of course, they were aided by some brilliant England fielding.

The South African openers departed early, but a solid partnership of 51 runs for the third wicket between the debutante Bruce Mitchell and captain Dudley Nourse ensured stability. As the partnership started to look threatening for England, Dudley Nourse fell to an amazing one-handed catch taken Alan Watkins at short-leg off the bowling of legspinner Doug Bright for 37. No sooner had Nourse placed a ball to leg, Watkins quickly dove to his right and with one hand, inches from the turf, grasped the catch. Then a brilliant throw from Cyril Washbrook ran out Wade and dented the South African confidence further.

England were back in the game!

Bedser and Gladwin burst into the scene with some superlative bowling display. They swung the ball late on a track where the ball kept low and the bounce was uneven as well. Only the debutante Denis Begbie and OC Dawson were able to put up some resistance, but the rest of the South African batsmen failed miserably.

The South Africans were all out for just 161 runs. Bedser and Gladwin finished with figures of 4 for 39 and 3 for 21 respectively. Wicketkeeper Godfrey Evans and Denis Compton, fielding at backward short-leg, held five catches between them.

England dominate on rain-curtailed Day 2

Only three hours of play was possible due to a thunderstorm on the second day. But England were in supreme command as they finished the second day with 144 for 2. The South African fast-medium pacers could hardly make Len Hutton and Cyril Washbrook sweat as they scripted up a 50-run partnership in fifty minutes.

To stop the fluency of the English openers, Dudley Nourse unleashed his spinners – Tufty Mann’s left-arm slowers and Athol Rowan’s off-breaks pinned down England’s fluency. Mann removed Washbrook and the debutante RT Simpson too fell to Mann as his 13 overs on the second day fetched just 15 runs. Len Hutton had batted in a commanding fashion to reach a solid 81 by stumps while Denis Compton was not out on 17.

Dramatic Day 3

The third day was a dramatic one. The runs were hard to score and before bad light stopped play, 19 wickets fell for just 199 runs. Mann’s changed-decision regarding the rolling of the pitch was instrumental in making the day a dramatic one.

After an inspection in the morning, Mann suggested for the pitch to be rolled to repair the damage caused the storm. But he changed his mind as the Wisden said, “But he changed his mind before the ground staff arrived, and by delaying the rolling till just before the start ensured that the pitch would not improve.”

By the time heavy roller was introduced a dry crust had formed on the surface and as it was rolled over, it crumbled which meant that the track became highly favourable for the slow bowlers.

Dudley Nourse immediately brought on his spinners. Mann and Rowan bowled unchanged for the last two hours of the England innings. They made the ball, turn viciously and generated enough lift. The wickets kept on falling, but one man remained firm and composed. Denis Compton, who was dropped earlier, exhibited high profile technique and patience to counter the spinners and went on to script a dodgy but productive 72.

England were all out for 253. Mann picked up six wickets for 59 runs while Rowan fetched four wickets for 108 runs.

The South African start to the second innings was cautious. The openers seemed watchful enough but Wright’s legbreaks gave England the first breakthrough. Wright accounted for the scalp of OE Wynne and pretty soon, Jenkins removed Rowan. Dudley Nourse and Mitchell got involved with the repair work. Nourse did not roll the pitch and decided to tackle the English leggie Wright on his own. Wright was suffering from a lean patch, but at the right time his form had picked up – he made the ball talk.

Nourse and Mitchell added 45 runs for the third wicket. England needed a breakthrough. Alec Bedser came into bowl and fetched the priced scalp of Dudley Nourse. Then, after adding 22 runs for the fourth wicket with Wade, Mitchell was done by a Wright legbreak as the South Africans ended the third day at 90 for 4.

The next day was a rest day and the fourth would become a part of Test cricket’s folklore.

The thrilling Day 4

Wade and Begbie looked confident enough on such a tricky track and dished out an 85-run partnership for the fifth-wicket. Begbie fell two runs short of a half-century and then Wright dismissed Sawson cheaply. Wade then departed for 63, bowled by Jenkins. Athol Rowan was castled by Wright, Mann fell to Compton and McCarthy was bowled by Jenkins as South Africa were all out for 219 and gave England a target of 128 to chase in 135 minutes.

On paper, this target might look simple for the star-studded English batting line-up, but on that track, it was never going to be a cakewalk.

In the dressing room George Mann, the English captain, made it clear about his intentions – he would go for a win even if risks had to be taken. The English openers came out to bat with a positive intent. Their battle would be against the unpredictability of the track and insufficient light. There was no question about appealing against the light though. This was a match that would be fought until the end.

Washbrook was dropped off the first ball he received from Tuckett on the boundary. Tufty Mann, the South African bowling hero in the first innings, dismissed Len Hutton for five. England skipper George Mann promoted himself up the order and came out to bat at number three. No sooner had George Mann got set, a superb slip-catch by Mitchell helped the 19-year-old Test debutante, Cuan McCarthy, to get his first Test wicket. The wicket of George Mann gave McCarthy a huge boost.

Suddenly, McCarthy was in rhythm – his run-up was perfect, he delivered the ball with pace and pitched it on a perfect line and length – the ingredients of a fantastic bowling spell was on offer.

Watkins was done by virtue of sheer pace, Simpson nicked one to EAB Rowan, and Godfrey Evans was castled as McCarthy’s hostility simply left England reeling at 70 for 6. Denis Compton and Roly Jenkins resisted the hostile spell of McCarthy. A partnership of 45 runs was added for the seventh wicket but McCarthy removed both Compton and Jenkins as the Test match headed towards one of the most dramatic finishes in the history of Test cricket.

McCarthy had picked six wickets in the second innings, but they went in vain.

Bowling colleagues Bedser and Gladwin were together for the final eight-ball over as the ninth-wicket partners. The light was appalling and there was drizzle as well, but nobody considered calling off the nerve-wracking action.

Bedser brought the scores level with a single off Len Tuckett’s sixth ball. One run was needed to win and Clifford Gladwin swiped at one of Tuckett’s length balls but missed it.

The two batsmen held a midwicket conference and decided they would run regardless of what happened off the last ball. Again, Gladwin swung and missed. The ball thudded into his thigh and bounced two yards away from him towards Tufty Mann at short leg. Bedser was coming down the wicket like rugby’s wing three-quarter and Gladwin scurried off towards the other end. Tufty Mann pounced on the ball but could not break the wicket before Bedser hurtled to safety to clinch an incredible last-ball victory.

Players from both sides were chaired off the pitch by the excited spectators who could hardly imagine what they had witnessed. Many of the English players in the pavilion missed the winning run because they could not bear to watch.

Imagine a winning run off the last-ball in a Test match via a leg-bye and it has happened just once in the history of Test cricket.

The final day at Durban was a heart-stopping affair and it boosted England’s confidence a lot, who went on to win the Test series by 2-0.

Note: This article has been published at Cricketsoccer on 19/04/2018 CS Flashback: The heart-stopping contest at Durban

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

Mustafizur Rahman: A special gift

Bangladesh is a blessed country with so many natural talents. But she can count herself the luckiest as because she has been blessed with a few of the special gifts of God. Mustafizur Rahman is one of them.

Two unknown footballers made their way into Brazil’s World Cup squad of 1958. One was a 17-year old id and the other was a boy who played football for joy and on the pitch did not know against whom he was playing – he played for the joy of people. Back then, the Brazilian think tank regarded them as special gifts and it was only a matter of time, the world would come to know about them. Indeed, Brazil’s dawn was just breaking.

Brazil’s coach Vincente Feola did not risk of unleashing them in the first two encounters against Austria and England, but against the former Soviet Union, Feola needed to come up with something different. He decided to include two of the special gifts of Brazil – Pele and Garrincha -  with the motive to unsettle the scientific football of Soviet Union.

Garrincha scripted the greatest three minutes in the history of World Cup football against the Soviets while the 17-year old kid Pele would turn the world upside down with his dazzling skills and goal scoring abilities.  In the next twelve years, world would witness the era of Brazil football and two of the special gifts would be hugely responsible for scripting one of the golden eras of Brazil football.    

The sporting fraternity is full of such special gifts. The God at times shower His blessing upon a nation in the form of special characters like Pele, Garrincha, Maradona, Mohammad Ali or Shakib Al Hasan, who not only strike gold on the pitch, but also carries the hope and aspiration of whole nation.  The luckiest nations, at times, are blessed with few more special gifts.

In that sense, Bangladesh can count themselves as one of the luckiest ones. As because, along with Shakib, God has gifted Bangladesh Mustafizur Rahman aka Fizz.

In 2012, a shy, skinny Fizz came to Dhaka from Satkhira to trail at a fast-bowling camp at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. His abilities as a left-arm fast bowler did not go unnoticed by the local coaches who decided to give him a go in the age group teams. Two years later, Fizz would fetch nine wickets at an average of 18.44 in the Under-19 World Cup in the Middle East. The same year he made his debut in Bangladesh Cricket League for Khulna Division.

“He is the best Under-19 bowler in the country. It is not necessary that he will play matches, but he is a prospect, and offers us the left-arm seam variety,” said by the former selector of Bangladesh Farooque Ahmed.  

But Fizz’s international debut was still delayed until, he caught the attention of Chandika Hathurusingha. Chandika recognized, what a great asset Fizz was and immediately decided to unleash this gem in 2015 against Pakistan, India and South Africa. Under the supreme guidance of Chandika and Heath Streak, Fizz bamboozled India and South Africa to create waves even in the cold shores of England. The world went crazy about him. He was an overnight sensation in Bangladesh and across the border.

Fizz would become the X-factor in Chandika’s four-man pace attack – a ploy which unleashed a new era in Bangladesh cricket, who once upon a time relied heavily on left-arm spinners.  Back then, the attack comprising of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Rubel Hossain, Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman triggered a humungous euphoria among the fans and critics. Especially, Fizz was the centre of attraction in every game. Mind you, when a talent, even overshadows the aura of Shakib, you have to bear in mind about the weight and charisma of that talent. Man, Fizz is such a special gift!  

Fizz is a freak! Man, it’s never easy to deceive the batsmen with such a pace! Neither his pace is as deceptive as Wasim Akmram nor would he put chills down the spine Bill Voce, but most of the times he would clock around  120-135 kmph. Very rarely he would touch that 140 kmph mark. He is not genuinely quick and does not have the ability to swing or dish out the rip-snorting bouncers.  But he is well-equipped to bag wickets with his medium-fast kinds of stuff as because, he has his own cataclysmic and mystical variation.  

His most lethal weapon is the offcutter, which come off at a reduced pace with little change in action. In naked eyes, those would look like lollipops, but when it swerve after landing on the back of a length to outfox the very best, you tend to sit back and wish to have another look at it. You are left asking yourself, “What is so special in those cutters”? Yes, those deliveries look so benign, but still, they either disturb the timber or trap the batsmen lbw.  

That’s why I termed him as a special gift. Where the likes of Wasim, Voce, or Alan Davidson’s quickish left-arm made them a nemesis for the batsmen worldwide, here in Bangladesh,  the calm and quiet boy from Sathkhira, Mustafizur Rahman’s not-so-quick left-arm continues to enrich his tally of wickets each day, each season.    

Like any other pacer, Fizz would use the new ball – make it either come back in or move away off the seam, but as soon as the ball get’s old, the magic of Fizz would unleash. He does not need to rely on reverse-swing, but his cutters help him a lot as the surface aid him to achieve enough grip. Of course, it requires enough skill to utilize the surface as well.

There would be no change in arm-speed, a factor which makes it tough for the batsmen to pick him up, and at the point of delivery the wrist would break as the ball comes down with a scrambled seam resembling like a spinner – not an easy one to handle. Of course, the length of Fizz is always around that good and back of a length, area and when the ball spins from that length from an angle wide of the crease, it’s a treat for the cricket lovers.  

Muttiah Muralitharan said, “It is always about the change of pace. Why spinners do well is because the pace on the ball is different. In Mustafizur’s case he can bowl the slower ball without any significant change in his action, making it very difficult for the batsman to pick up the variation. This is a real skill.”

Injuries halted his progress in 2016, but under Courtney Walsh, the rehabilitation work went very well. Over the years, Fizz has learned the art of moving the old ball. It was evident during the Test series against Australia and Sri Lanka.  Alongside, the offcutter, Fizz can bring the ball back in more and fire straight into the blockhole to end the story of tail-enders.  He is bowling closer to the stumps at present and has mastered the art of bowling around the wicket and utilize the angle like Wasim Akram once did.

Bangladesh should be thankful for having someone like Fizz on their side. The most important thing which each and every Bangladeshi should realise, let Fizz play his own way and not try to hold him back from expressing himself in the middle. A special gift like Fizz are independent by nature and they tend to lose their shine under the guidance of pragmatic minds.

As Eric Clapton said, “In playing, I suppose, my greatest gift was to express the way I felt or the willingness to express myself”.

The world enjoyed a lot of Bill Voce, Alan Davidson and Wasim Akram’s destructive, but artistic poetry. I think the time has come to enjoy the non-destructive, but the artistic poetry of Fizz in the upcoming days. You don’t get an opportunity to relish the joy of witnessing a left-arm pacer every time. Fizz is here to provide us with the joy after Wasim. It’s time to enjoy the special gift, from Bangladesh.  

Note: Thsi article has been published at Cricketsoccer on 13/04/2018 Mustafizur Rahman: A special gift

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

চাঁটার দল

উত্তাল ঢাকা। ঢাকা শহরের সকল ছাত্রছাত্রী একজোট হয়ে তাদের আধিকার আদায়ের আন্দোলন করছে।বেসরকারি মেডিকেল কলেজের মধ্যবিত্ত ঘরের সন্তান বিজয় ও তাদের সাথে আন্দোলনে যোগ দিয়েছে।বাবা-মা অনেক টাকা খরচ করে তাকে চিকিৎসক বানানোর স্বপ্ন নিয়ে ঢাকার নামকরা এক মেডিকেল কলেজে পড়ার ব্যবস্থা করে দিয়েছে। বিজয় মেধাবী না কিন্তু রেগুলার ছাত্র। যে করেই হোক তাকে পাঁচ বছরের মধ্যেই পড়াটা শেষ করতে হবে। দুটো প্রফ সে একবারেই শেষ করেছে। এখন বাকি ফাইনাল প্রফ। এই প্রফ পাশ করলেই তার মুক্তি। তার বাবাকে আর মাসে, মাসে এত বেতন দিতে হবে না।

কিন্তু ঢাকা সহ পুরো দেশ উত্তাল। সব বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় এবং মেডিকেল কলেজের ছাত্ররা রাস্তায় নেমেছে অধিকার আদায়ের জন্য। এই আন্দোলনের উত্তাপ বিজয় এরাতে পারেনি। সে আন্দোলনে যোগ দিয়েছে। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের হেভিওয়েটদের সাথে সেও আন্দোলনে শ্লোগান দিচ্ছে।

সেদিনকার রাতটি ছিল বিভীষিকাময়। আন্দোলনরত ছাত্রদের উপর পুলিশ রবার বুলেট, গরম পানি এবং টিয়ার গ্যাস ছুঁড়েছে।বিজয় আহত হয়েছে। তার রুমমেট হামিদুর রাহমান তাকে ঢাকা মেডিকেল কলেজে নিয়ে যায়। বিজয় হামিদকে অনুরোধ করে, সে যেন তার বাবা-মা কে কিছু না বলে। তাদের ছেলের এই অবস্থা শুনে তারা সহ্য করতে পারবে না।

“তুই চিন্তা করিস না দোস্ত। আগে তুই ঠিক হ। তারপর দেখা যাবে”। হামিদ এই কথা বলে তাকে আশ্বস্ত করে।

আহত বিজয় ঢামেকের মেঝেতে শুয়ে আছে।

তার পাশে আরও অনেকেই আহত অবস্থায় পড়ে আছে।

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খানিকক্ষণ পর সে খেয়াল করে, সে এক একটি রুমে শুয়ে আছে।

আশেপাশের সেই আহত ছাত্রদের আর দেখা যাচ্ছে না।

সে ভাবতে থাকল, তাকে কি কোন অবসারভেসন রুমে নিয়ে আসা হয়েছে?

খুবই খারাপ কিছু হয়নি তো?

টিয়ার গ্যাসের সেল তার মাথায় লেগেছে। অনেক রক্ত ঝরেছে। বুকে এবং পিঠে রবার বুলেট লেগেছে।

বিজয় ভাবতে থাকে।

“তোরা কি করছিস রে”?একটা গম্ভীর এবং ভরাট গলা বলে উঠল।

আধা-আলো এবং আধা ছায়ার মধ্যে বিজয় একটি বিশাল ছায়া আবিষ্কার করল যে পাইপ টেনে, টেনে কথা বলছিল।পাইপের ধোয়াতে পুরো রুম আচ্ছন্ন করে রেখেছে। ছায়াটি একটি দোদুল্যমান চেয়ারে বসে দুলছে আর কথা বলছে। আলোতে তার মুখ ভেসে উঠার সাথে, সাথে বিজয় আবিষ্কার করল সে আর কেউ নয় বরং বঙ্গবন্ধু শেখ মুজিবর রাহমান।

বিজয় স্তম্ভিত।

এটা কি করে সম্ভব?

বঙ্গবন্ধু এখানে কি করছেন? আর আমার সাথেই বা কেন কথা বলছেন?

“এই তোরা কি শুরু করেছিস? এই বাংলার মাটিতে আবার রক্তের দাগ কেন রে? তোদেরকে বাংলাদেশ দিয়েছি কি আরও বেশী রক্ত ঝরানোর জন্য? আমার আশে পাশে থাকা চাঁটার দল গুলো এখনও আছে দেখছি”।

বঙ্গবন্ধু চুপ করে গেলেন।

পাইপ টানতে থাকলেন।

বিজয় চুপ।

তার মাথা কাজ করছে না।

বঙ্গবন্ধু আবার গর্জন করে উঠলেন। এবার তার তর্জনী বিজয়ের দিকে।

“এই চাঁটার দল দেশের মানুষ এক হোক চায় না। কোন না কোন কিছু একটা বাঁধিয়ে সবাইকে আলাদা করে রাখবে। তোদের রক্ত ঝরছে।তোদের এই রক্ত নিয়েও চাঁটার দল এই বাংলার মাটিতে রাজনীতি করছে। ওরা কি বুঝে না, নিরীহদের রক্ত নিয়ে রাজনীতির খেলা ভালো কিছু আনে না!তোরা ন্যায়ের পক্ষে লড়ছিস কিন্তু চাঁটার দল সেটা নিয়ে খেলবে, খেলছে। কাদের সাথে চলিস কিংবা কাদের কথায় তোরা নাচিস সেটা তোরা কি ভেবে দেখিস”?  

বিজয় ভয়ে, ভয়ে বলে উঠল, “জি, জি না!”

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দূর থেকে বুট জুতার আওয়াজ পাওয়া গেল। দৃশ্য পটে ভেসে উঠল জিয়াউর রাহমান। তার চোখে রেভ্যান সানগ্লাস। পরনে আর্মি পোশাক।

কিরে তুই কোথা থেকে এলি?বঙ্গবন্ধু জিয়াউর রাহমানকে জিজ্ঞেস করলেন।

“Sir, I was in your assignment to control the chaotic regions of Dhaka. The students have gone out of control. We had to intervene to restore peace. Now everything is under control,” জিয়া উত্তর দিলেন।

“হুম, ভালো করেছিস। সফিউল্লাহ কই? ওকে কামের সময় কখনও পাওয়া যায় না,” বঙ্গবন্ধু গম্ভিরভাবে বললেন।তারপর বললেন, “বাংলার মাটিতে আবারও রক্ত জিয়া। এটা মানতে পারছি না। এসব অবুজ তরুন গুলো না বুঝে ঝাপিয়ে পড়ছে। এই সবুজ ঘাসে আমি রক্ত দেখতে চাই না রে”।

জিয়া বিজয়ের পাশে বসলেন এবং বললেন, “দেশকে ভালভবাসো”?

বিজয় বলল, “আমার নিজের জানের চেয়েও বেশী ভালবাসি”।

“গুড। কিন্তু দেশের জন্য কাজ এভাবে করলে হবে না। তোমার শ্রম এবং মেধা দিতে হবে।এবং যেটাই কর সৎ এবং নিষ্ঠার সাথে করবে। মনে রাখবে, এই দেশের কাছে তুমি ঋণী। এই ঋণ শোধ করার মত নয়। তুমি ভালো কাজ করলেই না দেশ এগিয়ে যাবে। বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা, সার্বভৌমত্ব এবং সম্মান তোমাদের মত তরুনদের হাতে।কি করছ আর না করছ সেটা ভেবে চিন্তে করবে”।

বঙ্গবন্ধু দাড়িয়ে গেলেন। বলে উঠলেন, “তোদের বুকের আর এক ফোঁটা রক্ত আমি সহ্য করব না। এই চাঁটার দলকে আমি শায়েস্তা করব। আমি বাঙ্গালী, আমি মুসলমান, আমি শেখ মুজিবর রহমান এখনও মরি নাই যে এই বাংলার দামাল ছেলেদের বুক থেকে রক্ত ঝরবে”।  

“আমরা সর্বদা এই দেশের পাশে আছি এবং থাকব। বিশেষ তোমাদের মত তরুন্দের পাশে আমরা আছি। We will fight for the rights and justice of people of Bangladesh till the end. Allah will always be with Bangladesh,” বিজয়কে জিয়া আশ্বস্ত করলেন।

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বিজয়ের চোখ খুলেছে।

তাকে সার্জারি ওয়ার্ডে রাখা হয়েছে।

তার পাশে বসে বাবা এবং মা কাঁদছেন।

হামিদ তার বন্ধুর অনুরোধ উপেক্ষা করে বিজয়ের বাবা-মাকে খবর দিয়েছে।

মা আবেগি হয়ে বিজয়কে জড়িয়ে ধরে কাঁদছে।

কিন্তু বিজয়ের মাথায় গত রাতের সেই স্বপ্নের কথোপকথন গুলো ঘুরে বেরাচ্ছে।

সে কেন ঐ সপ্ন দেখল?

ওটা কি কোন নির্দেশনা নাকি নিছক একটা স্বপ্ন।

ঢামেকের ওয়ার্ডে শুয়েই সে শ্লোগান শুনছে।

শ্লোগান মুখর ঢাকা।

কিন্তু এই শ্লোগান কি শুধুই অধিকার আদায়ের শ্লোগান নাকি অন্য কিছু?

চাঁটার দল কথাটি বিজয়ের কানে কে যেন বলে গেলো।

পাশেড় টেবিলে দেখল একটি পাইপ এবং রেভ্যান সানগ্লাস পড়ে আছে।  

    

নোটঃ এটা একটি ফিক্সন।  

ধন্যবাদ 
ফয়সাল সিজার                             

CS Flashback: When Javed Omar taught a young Test nation about exhibiting character away from home

Young, but promising. Enthusiastic, but always kept his feet on the ground. Steady, resolve and blessed with willpower. It was an eventful debut for Javed Omar.      

The winter of 2000 ended with a lot of joy and enthusiasm for Bangladesh. The first four days of Bangladesh’s inaugural Test match against India at Bangabandhu National Stadium would remain as the talk of the town till the end of that year. While passing by a small cafeteria or tea stall, the words Aminul Islam, Habibul Bashar, Naimur Rahman or Mohammad Rafique would enter your ears by dissecting the evening fog which engulfed Dhaka in those days.

It’s always a nice feeling when you hear people talking more about the local cricketers and not foreign ones. The mentality of Bangladesh’s cricket fraternity was changing gradually. T was time to talk about their own players. Cricket would remain just another sport in Bangladesh.

But still, the young Test nation had a long way to go. According to many critics, it was early for Bangladesh to receive the coveted Test status. The performance in the inaugural Test match did help the Tigers to shut the mouth of critics, but in the upcoming days, things only got worse for Bangladesh. Even though, amid the heavy defeats, there were flashes of individual brilliance, which gave hope for a better future.

Bangladesh’s first tour to abroad was in Zimbabwe in April, 2001. The month of April, 2001 was eventful:   Seven people were killed in bomb blast at a Bengali New Year concert in Dhaka. 1 Indian and 3 Bangladeshi soldiers killed in their worst border clashes and the High Court confirmed death sentences on 12 ex-army officers for killing Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Only four were in custody. Especially, the bomb blast at Ramna Botomul during Pohela Boishak rocked the nation. It triggered a shock wave around the nation and left everyone stunned as Bangladesh were experiencing such an incident for the first time.

The Tigers left the country with the motive to prove a point in Zimbabwe and make the tragic incident at Ramna  Botomul to work as a motivating factor or them.

Zimbabwe in 2001 was a very competent Test side. They used to give testing times even the best in the business at their own backyard. The likes of Flower brothers, Heath Streak, Stuart Carlisle and Alastair Campbell made Zimbabwe a team to watch. In terms of experience and skill, they were way ahead of visitors.

The first Test match was at Queens Sports Club at Bulawayo. The home team prepared a greenish pitch as John Ward’s match report quoted, “a pitch containing an unusual amount of grass for this venue”. Streak won the toss and invited the visitors to bat on a seaming-friendly track.

Blignaut ended the stay of Mehrab Hossain and Habibul Bashar and 30 for 2 scoreline in the 14th over did not surprise anyone. It was evident, but what was not expected, the resolve and technical expertise from a young man named Javed Omar, who was making his debut at that time.

With the sun shining brightly above, scripting a sultry weather and the track doing a lot, steadiness and exhibition of character were required.  Javed forgot about what was happening all around him. Neither the hot and humid weather, nor the ecstasy of the home team could overcast his will to perform. He knew, he had is imitations, but he was not in short of self-confidence.

Rock solid defence had always been an asset for Javed. He was one of those nuggety characters who would make the opposition grind with his tendency to occupy the crease. Of course, he would not just waste his stay at the crease, but as soon as he discovered his groove, he would flay some eye-catching strokes on both sides of the wicket.

Streak and Blignaut were tough to handle and when Watambwa came on to bowl, he was faster than his predecessors. But Javed remained unfazed by the hostility. Rather, he was pretty competent while getting behind the line of the ball better and never let the loose deliveries go wasted as they were smacked for fours.

Along with Aminul Islam, Javed weathered the storm well and went for lunch with no further damage.  After lunch, he slashed Streak and Blignaut over the slip cordon for four. Then they were hit through backward point by getting on the back foot like an experienced campaigner and well, one needs to accolade him for his timing through the offside field.

Javed fell after scoring 62 runs with nine fours and stitching an 84-run stand for the third wicket with Aminul Islam. It helped to arrest a collapse, but all the good works were wasted as the visitors lost wickets cheaply at the fag end of Day 1.

In the second innings, while trailing by 200 runs, Javed raised above the rest when Streak, Blignaut and Matambwa set jitters I Bangladesh batting lineup.   The Bangladesh middle-order batsmen lost their vim after toiling hard under the hot sun and simply failed to focus on what was happening in the middle. But the young Javed would not give up so easily.

He would spend 277 minutes at the crease and face 68 balls to essay an innings of 85 runs. While the rest of the team would add just 83 runs and digest an innings defeat.    

Javed’s knock in the second innings was much more fluent than the first. Especially, his foot movement. It was synchronous along with his bat-swing. If he executed a shot through the covers, the toe end would face towards that area along with the bat and if anything pitched short, he would get very well on the back to achieve enough time to use the middle portion of the willow to flay the ground shots.

Well, not a bad show from a young player who was playing his first Test. Also, not a bad lesson from a débutante who taught others about how to exhibit character on foreign soil. 

Note: This article was published at Cricketsoccer on 09/04/2018 CS Flashback: When Javed Omar taught a young Test nation about exhibiting character away from home

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

Video: Australia surrender meekly, but New Zealand exhibited character

No one even thought of a 3-1 result in favour of South Africa in such a comprehensive fashion. Australia simply failed to handle the pressure over the past few weeks and melted under the hot sun at the Wanderers. While Australia lost pathetically, New Zealand hung on to an absolute cliffhanger at Christchurch and broke the 34-year old jinx against England.

Deep Dasgupta, Arunabha Sengupta and Faisal Caesar discuss the Test matches played at Johannesburg and Christchurch....

Note: This video has been posted at Cricketsoccer on 06/04/2018 Video: Australia surrender meekly, but New Zealand exhibited character

Thank You
Faisal Caesar 

Shakib Al Hasan: The flawed genius

Can you dislike Shakib Al Hasan? Yes, you can! But not for a long time. He will force you to become his number 1 fan. He is a flawed genius!

     

In any sporting conversations, using the word ‘Genius’ is a common practice among the sports fans and critics. Talk about Lionel Messi, well, the word genius would come first than any other words. Talk about Sachin Tendulkar, in the twinkle of an eye, a cricket fan would use the word genius. For the likes of Messi and Tendulkar, the portrait of a genius is that of a saint – gentle, calm, soft-spoken, well behaved and master of his task. For the likes of Messi and Tendulkar, names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Garrincha and Virat Kohli or Shakib Al Hasan get overshadowed as because, these people are the flawed genius, misunderstood genius!

There is always a beauty in being a flawed genius. I always felt, it is always extremely exciting to watch a flawed genius on-song rather than the saints. A genius is not half as thrilling as its prodigal twin – flawed genius. The Saints earn the respect and accolades, but when the matter is about getting astonished, genuine affection and overflowing love; you always lavish these on a flawed genius.

Shakib, the boy from Magura, is more often overshadowed by the saint-like-figure of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and his controversies. The local press sells Mashrafe to fill their pockets and shrug off their identity crisis by taking photos and selfies with Mash and they lift up their click-bait journalism by tarnishing the image of Shakib. It’s a common practice here in Bangladesh. But very few could understand how bigger a genius Shakib is. And how badly is he misunderstood and misrepresented at times!

Shakib’s behavior is not praiseworthy. At times, he is like a school kid who enters in a toy shop and brings the whole shop if he is not gifted his favourite toy. Then there are times when, his off the field antics simply let the image of this game and Bangladesh down. But, still, Shakib dominates the consciousness of the Bangladeshi fans. Just like Cristiano, Shakib would brush away all his arrogance with just one masterstroke – a thing which a saint cannot do more often.    

On one fine morning at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka, Bangladesh discovered themselves in the soup at 10 for 3 against Australia. The young and energetic Pat Cummins put chills down the spine of Bangladeshi top order batsmen. Shakib came out to bat at number 5 and saw an Empire lay in ruins all around him with ominous signs of a collapse which would only make Bangladesh a butt of jokes for its harsh critics. The situation demanded counter-punch as none could script such better than a flawed genius.

After a short period of quietness, the southpaw unleashed some exquisite strokes on the green canvas of Mirpur. There was no respite for Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon and the dangerous Cummins. He caressed the offside field with an absolute surgical precision while the back foot stroke-play was similar to Ian Botham against Australia at Leeds in 1981 – a treat for the cricketing Gods. The collapse was arrested as the fourth wicket added 155 valuable runs.

On the second day, Shakib’s arm-ball and well-pitched-up deliveries ended Australia’s innings quickly as the Tigers took a healthy lead. They gave Australia 264 to win in the fourth innings and David Warner was in no mood to digest a defeat. He took the attack back to Bangladesh as at one point Australia were cruising. Yet again, the situation demanded the flawed genius to showcase his expertise.

Shakib trapped Warner lbw. The Tiger had smelt the taste of blood and flesh and immediately, Shakib sharpened his claws and teeth to tear Australian middle order apart. 158 for 3 transformed into 199 for 8 – a reminiscence of Imran Khan’s spell against India at Karachi in 1982-83. Cummins’ dished out a brief resistance, but Bangladesh laughed the last smile. Thanks to the genius of Shakib. 

Then one cannot forget his smartness to tame MS Dhoni at the same venue in 2015. The limelight was stolen by Mustafizur Rahman, but very few realized what Dhoni could do if he was not dismissed at a very crucial juncture of the match. Shakib simply toyed with Dhoni for a while with flight and discipline. The calmest and coolest captain in the world was pressurised and the end result was – MS Dhoni c Mushfiqur Rahim b Shakib Al Hasan 40 off 40 balls.

This is the genius of Shakib. He strikes when it is needed the most.

Just when you have given up, a flawed genius like Shakib would think otherwise. He would walk around the field lazily with dropped shoulders and would not even give his teammates to realise what is going through his mind. Just beneath the skull, the nervous pathways of brain would transmit various information and sum up a lethal idea – the idea of turning things around on the basis of super-confidence and super-skill – a deadly combination for which one cannot hate Shakib for a long time.     

 Watching Shakib Al Hasan bat in full flow and bowl in an attacking fashion is like experiencing a volcano to erupt or a sea to get angry, transforming into a tsunami to engulf everything on its way. At times, the mechanism of batting and bowling don’t remain just a matter of technical subject, but it becomes all about the forces of nature – the dance of the Shiva!  

 Can you dislike Shakib? Yes, you can. It’s your life, your rules. But how long can you dislike him? Shakib will force you to love him. He will force you to become his number 1 fan. Shakib is a genius in his own way. He has erased the fine line between genius and insanity long ago while being spotted as a young prodigy by the local coaches. And which has made the Shakib of today – a flawed genius!

Note: This article has been published at Cricketsoccer on 06/04/2018 Shakib Al Hasan: The flawed genius

Thank You
Faisal Caesar