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Sports, Cricket

Mushfiqur: The lone fighter


Published : 25 May 2021 09:42 PM

When wickets were crumbling at the other end, the most dependable batsman of Bangladesh cricket team MusfiqurRahim stood out again and scored a classy ton to propel his side to a respectable total of 246 in the ran-hit second ODI match against Sri Lanka at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Tuesday. 

Mushfiq scored an outstanding 127-ball 125 comprised with 10 fours. He was the lone fighter for his team as other batsmen failed to show any kind of resistance against the Lankan bowlers. 

He scored his century by tucking DushmanthaChameera’s delivery through the fine leg area. The experienced batsman picked up the eighth century of his ODI career to pull a Bangladesh side which were under pressure.

Just like the first ODI, Mushfiqur once again presented his aesthetic batting in the second ODI as well. During his superlative knock, he restrained himself from hitting aggressive shots and hit less boundaries. Even then, he got a century with a good strike rate by rotating the strike quickly. 

Mushfiqur reached fifty in the 70th delivery he faced. He completed the century with 114 balls. The four through which he reached three figures was only the fifth four of his innings! In other words, he scored his lion's share of runs by rotating the strike. 

Mushfiqur tailored his batting to the nature of the pitch, seldom driving down the ground, and using deflections expertly. He struck three fours through the covers and one down the ground, while several were placed just metres away from the wicketkeeper. Mushfiqurentered the pitch in the second over of the innings when captain Tamim Iqbal and ace-allrounder Shakib Al Hasan were dismissed for team total of 15 runs. He played a very responsible role since then and kept Bangladesh ticking. 

Mushfiqur anchored a 87-run fifth-wicket partnership with Mahmudullah Riyad. Before, Mahmudullah became the third victim of Lakshan Sandakan. The second-highest score (41) of the innings came from the bat of Mahmudullah Riyad. Mushfiqurwas the last man out, ruing missing out on the last 11 balls as he fell at the start of the 49th over.