“I had a big innings without playing some of my favourite shots”: Mushfiqur

Mushfiqur Rahim

With his unbeaten 219 against Zimbabwe, Mushfiqur Rahim on Monday became the first wicket-keeper, and the first Bangladeshi, to notch two double-hundreds in Test cricket.

When the declaration came, he had also posted Bangladesh’s highest Test score. The wicket-keeper batsman had previously led the charts for the most runs in a single Test innings for Bangladesh when he hit 200 against Sri Lanka in 2013, but was overtaken by Tamim Iqbal in 2015, and then by Shakib Al Hasan in 2017.

“Tamim [Iqbal] and Shakib have also scored double-hundreds so now we know that there’s a way for us to score big,” he said. “I definitely wanted to go back to where I was, it was in the back of my mind. It is a healthy competition, which is beneficial for the team.”

With Shakib and Tamim absent, Bangladesh needed their other key batsmen to go big, and Mushfiqur obliged. It was a diligent knock with minimum risk – one that helped him record the longest innings by a Bangladesh batsman in Test history whilst propelling his side from 26/3 to 522/7.

“During this innings, I never took undue risk which was significant for me,” he said. “I had a big innings without playing some of my favourite shots. It has given me more belief.

“We lost three early wickets so the responsibility was on the rest of the batsmen. We needed to take the team to a safe position. I think Imrul, Mominul, myself and Mahmudullah have special responsibility, to make sure one of us get a big innings.

“We cannot win a game by getting thirties or fifties. We are starting a good trend of getting big hundreds. You saw it in the ODIs. It is a good sign. Being a senior member of the side, it is always my target to contribute as much as possible.”

Mushfiqur’s wicket-keeping has been a source of debate among Bangladesh fans, but despite having full-time glovemen in Liton Das and Mohammad Mithun also in the side, the 31-year-old is very keen to retain the gloves.

“As I have said repeatedly, keeping wicket helps me a lot. While it doesn’t mean that I will score centuries or double-centuries in every match where I keep, it is my process and I am a big believer in process and preparation. It really helps me.

“I have to do in a way the team management decides. It sometimes happens that there is a bit of a problem managing the workload of the two roles, but I think it is a challenge and one which I always enjoy. “I am the kind of person who does not want to sit in the dressing room doing nothing; I want to stay as much as possible on the field and contribute, feel like I am doing something for the team and my country. If I continue to be given this responsibility I believe I will be able to do it.”