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Team Mymensingh

During the early days of cricket in Bangladesh, (in the 1980′s and 1990′s), many players from the Mymensingh region (north of the capital),figured very prominently. Belal, Manju, Sadrul, Prince, Saiful and the list can go on and on. Not that the role of Mymensingh players’ has declined over time. Right now, two of the best all rounders of the country, Mahmuddullah Riad and Shuvagoto Hom are from Mymensingh. Before discussing the achievements of the cricketers of the region, one has to take a look back at the history of the city to get an idea about the gradual development of cricket in the region.

Sporting activities in the region gained momentum in the early part of the 20th century. The geo-political situation of the region was an important factor in the development. The plans to create an independent Indian, free from the British Raj, started to develop from the late 19th century. While most of the political leaders believed in democratic way to achieve freedom, a minority group believed in armed struggle and decided to start planning in that direction. This group was especially prominent in the two great provinces, Bengal and Punjab. For the Bengali group, Calcutta was not very safe. As the capital of a big country, security normally remained alert in the city. Dhaka (or Dacca, as it was called then), provided a safer haven. But following the 1905-1911 period, when the whole state of Bengal was actively protesting the move of the Raj to divide the state, Dacca, too, came under heavy police protection. In the new scenario, Chittagong, in the South East, and Mymensingh, north of Dacca, became important hub for freedom activists.

 

Though the Mymensingh city is just 120 km north of Dhaka, the communication between the cities at the time was very poor. Two jungles, Bhawal Gar, and Modhupur Gar stood between the cities. Big rivers  flowing in the east and the west, plus the Garo hills in the north, gave the Mymensingh region a separate identity. Obviously, the freedom activists thus found the place suitable for their purpose. For couple of reasons, they gave special importance to sports and cultural activities. Obviously these activities were used to hide their real intention. Also, as many of these organizations believed in an ultimate armed conflict with the British Raj, they wanted their members to be physically fit. Apart from football and cricket, Lathi Khela was also very popular.

Concentrating now on just cricket, during the middle of the century, WK Probir Kumar Sen, originally from Mymensingh emerged as the number 1 WK of India. More commonly known as Khokon Sen, he played 14 tests for India between 1948-1952, and played his part in India’s historical first test victory over England, in 1952-52 with 5 stumpings.  In fact, wicket keeping seemed initially to be the strongest point of the Mymensingh players, as during the Pakistan days, Nazim Ahmed, another WK from Mymensingh, was called for the trial of the Pak national team. But, he was unlucky to miss out on final selection. His younger brother, Manjur Ahemd Manju, was a WK cum top order batsman in the late 70′s and early 80′s. He was a very prominent figure in domestic arena, but failed to get regular opportunity in the national team due to the presence of Shafiq-Ul Haq Hira. (Belayet Hossain Belal, Manju’s contemporary, and like him a WK cum batsman, and also from Mymensingh, suffered similarly). Finally, Nasir Ahmed Nasu, the 3rd member of the family, (and like his brothers a WK) played regularly for the national team between1986-1994. Both Manju and Nasu are still prominent in our cricket arena as high level officials.

Now, I come to the main part of this article. I have formed a 11 member team taking players from Mymensingh. However, I have restricted myself to the Bangladesh era only. Also, I have decided to concentrate on the past, thus overlooking the claims of the current stars Riad and Shuvagoto.

Harun Ur Rashid (Liton): A right handed opening batsman Liton first caught the attention of the Dhaka cricket fans during the 1985-86 season. Playing for Abahani, at the absence of the No. 1 opener of the country at the time, Assaduzzaman Misha, Liton scored freely. Couple of years later, he represented the a combined Associate members XI in the first ever U-19 world cup in Australia. He and Bulbul were the two representatives from Bangladesh. Liton made an impressive start, scoring 38 against the Pak U-19 Xi, but then struggled badly in the remaining matches.

Still, the selectors here promoted him to the national team later in the year. . This however, didn’t work so well, as he bagged ducks against India and SL in the Wills Asia Cup in Oct.  His ODI career ended there, but to his great credit Liton would bounce back during the 1989-90 season, and would remain a prominent figure in Bangladesh cricket throughout the 90′s.

Successive half centuries against the touring Denmark team in the spring of 1990 helped him book his place for the ICC trophy team in the summer. He continued his liking of the Danish attack, smashing 127 against the Academic Bold Club, Denmark, in a practice match in May. Unfortunately, he failed to impress in the main tournament.

For most part of the early 90′s he scored heavily in the domestic arena, but mostly remained in the fringes of the national team. During the 1992 WC, we saw Mark Greatbatch of NZ take full advantage of the fielding restrictions in the first 15 overs. This tactic was perfected fully by the Lankans 4 years later. Liton was among the first local players to successfully try this tactic in Bangladesh cricket.

Finally given his chance in the ACC cup in KL, 1996, he helped his team lift the trophy. His highest 66* came in a group match against Brunei. He was overlooked for the ICC trophy in KL, in 1997. Instead, he led the ‘A’ team in the Wills Cup in Pakistan. Although, the ‘A’ team lost all their games against much stronger oppositions, it gave the opportunity to some young cricketers to get international exposure. Especially impressive was the middle order batsman Habibul Bashar Sumon who scored freely and ended the tournament with 174 runs at an average of 87.00.  Liton himself scored 43 against the ADB side at the famous national stadium, (Karachi). There he shared a 111 run 2nd wicket stand with Shahrirar Hossain. In his final international match, against England ‘A’ in Oct. 1999.,Liton scored a fine half century (55).

Manjur Ahmed Manju: A left handed opening bat and a WK, Manju could not get a regular place in the team due to the presence of Hira. Though a very reliable performer in the domestic arena, he had little opportunity in the international level. At least, his best effort in international cricket came in front of his home crowd at Mymensingh. Playing for the central zone side, in a 2 day match against the touring MCC side, in the 1980-81 season, he top scored with 30 in the 1st innings. Now, this might not seem very imprssive, but his team’s total score was only 73. In fact, apart from him, only all rounder Rafiq (13) managed to reach the double figures.

Manju is now the CEO of BCB.

Sanwar Hossain: An attractive middle order bat, Sanwar emerged in the scenes in the early 90′s. His timing in this regard wasn’t very good; with Nannu, Akram, Bulbul and Faruk firmly established n the Bangladesh middle order, there was little opportunity for the likes of Sanwar, Shanu, Selim and Bashar to show their talent at the international level. Also waiting in th wings were two talented teen agers, Al Shahriar and Naimur Rahman. After Faruk lost his place in the side after Bangladesh’s disastrous campaign in Kenya (1994) (he would return later in the decade), it became a straight fight between Habibul Bashar and Sanwar for the vacant No.3 position. Bashar was the initial choice, as he had scored heavily in the domestic arena, but initially he failed to make an impression in the international scene. So, Sanwar got his chance in the spring of 1997 during the SAARC Qaudrangular in Dhaka. This was part of Bangladesh’s preparation for the ICC trophy in KL. Sanwar made an impressive start scoring 76 against SL ‘A’; but he failed miserably in Kl. After scoring just 30 runs in 5 innings, he lost his place in side. But, he was recalled in the national team the very next year.

Bangladesh cricket at the time was passing through a transition period. Our triumph in 1997 ICC trophy ended our days as a minnow. From then on we faced the full members of ICC  more regulalrly. Unfortunately for most of our cricketers of the 90′s, this transformation was just too big. Sanwar was no exception. He played 27 ODIs after making his debut against India, at Dhaka, in Jan 1998. But his average is very modest (11.60). his only fifty (52) came against Zimbabwe in Nov. 2001. He made an impressive test debut  scoring 45 against NZ at Hamilton, in Dec. 2001; but after that there was little to talk about. He failed to reach fifty in 9 tests. His highest 49 came against SA at East London, in 2002. His international career ended after the Pakistan tour in the autumn of 2003.

Though he never showed his full talent in the international level, he was extremely successful and extremely popular in the Dhaka league. Here he played for a number of sides including the Greater Mymensingh Cricket Club (GMCC).  Sadly, he was unable to show his fullest talent at the highest level. Quite appropriately Cricinfo describes him as the ‘Stuart Law’ of Bangladesh.

Sadrul Anam: If Sanwar Hossain is the Stuart Law of Bangladesh, then Sadrul Anam can be described as the V.V.S. Laxman of Bangladesh. While the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid and Sehwag scores more regularly, in terms of style no one match the tall man from Hyderabad. Similarly, during his playing days, late 70′s and early 80′s, Sadrul was the most elegant of all the Bangladeshi batsman. He very seldom used power, leaving his delicate wristwork to do most of the work. A lot of his runs came square of the wicket, especially in the off side. Among his contemporaries in Bangladesh cricket only Omar Khaled Rumy and Nehal can be compared with him in elegance. Interestingly, all three shared the same attitude about the royal game. With Bangladesh cricket still in its amateur days,  they took the game as a pastime, rather than their profession. If they had taken the game seriously, the cricketing world would have heard a lot more about them.

Sadrul was a member of the Bangladesh team that finished 4th in the 1982 ICC trophy in England. For young Sadrul, though, it was a personal disaster. Unable to adjust his game to the English conditions, he managed just 14 runs 4 matches. Quite surprisingly, he found his name at the top of the bowling averages, having taken 1 wicket for 4 runs.

During the 1983-84 season, Sadrul was given the job of leading the 2nd string Bangladesh side (officially called the Bangladesh Tigers) in the SEA cricket tournament. He did an excellent job as captain, helping the young cricketers like Nannu, Shantoo, Atahar, Prince and others . His own form with the bat, however, wasn’t so good. He managed just 100 runs in 6 matches. His highest, 35, came in the rain affected fixture against HK at Mymensingh.

Although, he had a very brief stint with the national team, he enjoyed a lengthy career in the domestic arena, playing for Bangladesh Biman in the Dhaka League.

Mahbubur Rahman Selim: A right handed middle order bat, Selim impressed everybody with a string of good scores for Rupali Banks in the Dhaka League during the 1988-89 season. He was rewarded with a place in the Bangladesh U-19 team in the Asian Youth Cup in Dec. 1989. In the first match, against India, at Mymensingh, he disappointed his home fans getting out cheaply. But, later, he scored 40 against SL (at Chittagong), and 28 against Pakistan (at Dhaka). Thus he became a star of the youth team.

Unfortunately he could never become a regular member of the national team. It wasn’t exactly his fault. Throughout the 90′s the Bangladesh cricket mostly concentrated on the 50 over game, the 3,4 day matches were rare. Selim’s technique and temperament was more suited to the longer versions of the game. (The same can be said of Shahnewaz Shanu of Rajshahi and Bangladesh Biman). While his technique was solid, he didn’t posses the array of strokes of Bulbul, or the ability to improvise like Akram. Thus he mostly remained in the fringes. He played just 1 ODI for Bangladesh, against Zimbabwe at Dhaka, in March 1999. He failed, managing just 3 runs.

Bangladesh was given test status in 2000. And suddenly the emphasis was back on the longer version of the game. For Selim, this happened a decade too late.

Belayet Hossain Belal: Although he was a highly competent keeper, almost his all his matches for Bangladesh came as an specialist batsman. His aggressive batting made him suitable for one day cricket. In the 1st ICC Trophy, in England (1979), he scored 42 runs in 3 matches (Avg. 21.00).

He was more successful in 1st SEA cricket tournament in Jan 1984.. First Belal (75*) and Nehal (67*) shared an unbroken 5th wicket stand of 159 against Singapore in a group match. Belal was adjudged MoM. Then in the final, against HK, the pair came together, with the home side in a bit of bother at 82/4, chasing 152. Belal (33) and Nehal (32) made sure that there was no panic and at the end Bangladesh won by 3 wickets.

Nasir Ahmed Nasu: He had a straightforward career as a WK. After gradually making his way through the ranks, he took over the gloves of the national team in the 1986 ICC trophy, and remained an integral part of the side until the 1993-94 season. There was nothing flashy about his cricket; whether he was playing for the national team, or for Abahani KC, he was just happy keep it neat and simple behind the stumps. He never caught the limelight; in fact I don’t think he ever craved to do so either. Still, he found his name in the record books after the match against NZ at Sharjah, in April 1990. There in the massive Kiwi score of 338/4, he didn’t concede a single bye run.

The only deficiency of Nasu was his batting. He wasn’t exactly a rabbit with the bat, but at a time when Wicketkeepers were expected to contribute vital runs down the order, his batting average of 12.50 in 5 ODIs look rather ordinary. In fact, it was this deficiency that eventually cost him his place in the national team. As the One day game became extremely competitive in the early 90′s, all the teams were looking for WK cum hard hitting batsman. Nasu didn’t fill this criteria. So, Jahangir was treid in 1994, and the emergence of Khaled Mashud Pilot, a year later, ended any hope of a recall for Nasu.

Like his elder brother Manju, Nasu is still heavily involved with Bangladesh cricket as an official.

Gholam Nawsher Prince: A left arm fast bowler, Prince emerged as the fastest bowler of the country during the early 80′s. The selectors however, took the cautious approach with him. Instead of directly pushing him in to national team duty, they first tried him with the ‘Bangladesh Tigers’ in the 1984 SEA cup. He bowled well there; he didn’t take too many wickets. But, along with his new ball partner, another left armer Golam Morshed, kept things quite early on, allowing the slow bowlers, Wahid, Nannu and Rafiq to do the damage.

Prince was promoted to the national team a year later, and in his debut match, against SL in March, 1985, he dismissed Ranjan Madugale. In Jan, next year he dismissed Pak test players Shaib Mohammad and Ramiz Raja.

Overall his ODI record is not so impressive, 5 wickets at 62.80. But his performance in the ICC trophy cricket is far more impressive. He played 3 ICC trophy events, in 1986, 1990 and 1994, but his most impressive effort came in 1990 at the Netherlands. He finished with 13 wickets at less than 20 runs per wicket. Throughout the tournament, he and his new ball partner, Jahangir Alam Dulu (also a left armer), gave the Bangladesh side important early breakthroughs.

At Kenya 1994, he started the tournament well taking 3/25 against Argentina, and followed this with 4/36 against East and Central Africa in the next game. With the Nairobi wickets providing him with extra pace and bounce, he was thoroughly enjoying himself. Unfortunately, injury kept him out of the important 2nd round fixtures. His services was sorely missed, especially in the key matches against the Dutch and the host Kenya.

Following the disappointment at Kenya, there were wholesale changes in the national team. Both Prince and Dulu lost their places, as Anisur Rahman emerged as the new left arm fast bowler of the national team.

Saiful Islam: A right hand medium pacer, Saiful impressed during the 1989 youth cup. A year later, he made his ODI debut against SL at Calcutta.Though wicketless, he impressed bowling tightly. His best ever bowling effort came also against SL, at Sharjah in 1995. His 4/36 helped Bangladesh bowl the opposition out for 233. It was the first time Bangladesh managed to bowl their opposition out in a full ODI.

Saiful was expected to play a big role in the 1994 ICC trophy in Kenya. But an injury forced him to return home before the start of the tournament. But, he played his part in the historical triumph at KL, 1997. He took 9 wickets at less than 22 runs per wicket. His economy rate was also impressive, just 2.74.

Following the KL success, Bangladesh cricket saw a massive transition. Unfortunately, Saiful lost his place amidst the changes. He remained a highly successful performer in the domestic arena.

Anwarul Amin Azhar: In the late 70′s, Azhar, playing for Bangladesh Biman had the reputation of being an accurate and steady off break bowler. Already in his 30′s, at that stage it didn’t appear that he would feature in the national team. Bangladesh had a strong trio of spin bowlers, Lintu the left arm spinner. Ashraful the off  break bowler & Rumy the leg sin googley bowler. The trio reached their zenith during the 1978-79 season against MCC, as only the former test players Sir Conrad Hunte and John Jameson could handle them properly in slow turning tracks. Yet, some extra ordinary chain of events saw Azhar come in to the forfront in the 1980-81 season.

First, Linu, one of the greatest spinning talent ever to come from Bangladesh, left the team following an altercation with the cricket authorities during the summer of 1979. Rumy had a finger injury early in the 1980-81 season, and although he returned later in the season, he was never the same player again. Ashraful gave hints that he would soon retire from international cricket. Suddenly, Azhar emerged as the No.1 spinner of the country.

Having waited for so long, he wasted no time once given the chance. First, playing for the Central Zone side, at Faridpur, he took 3/24 against MCC. With medium pacer Azam taking 7/18, the tourists were bowoed out for 79 in their first innings. For Azhar, even more impressive was his 6/48 at Rajshahi. The MCC side was restricted to 255, as only Jameson, with all his experiences defied him scoring a patient 73.

Azhar enhanced his reputations further with economical bowling in the 1982 ICC trophy in England. He took only 8 wickets in 7 matches, but both his avg. (19.37) and his economy rate (only 2.44 runs per over) were impressive. He impressed again, in Feb. 1984, when in a 3 day match at Dhaka, he and Rumy destroyed a strong middle order of the Hyderabad Blues side.

This, however, ended his international career. Bangladesh at that stage focused more on one day cricket. And the selectors considered Azhar’s batting and fielding not up to the mark for this type of cricket. During the 1986 ICC trophy in England, the absence of a quality spin bowler was acutely felt.

Ramchand Goala: For more than two decades Ramchand Goala, a left arm spinner, was a permanenet feature of the Dhaka lLeague. During this long period, he played for Shantinagar, Abahani, GMCC and other clubs with great distinction. Yet, for some unknown reasons, the national selectors were rather reluctant to acknowledge his talents. They often pointed figners towards his lack of penetration as a bowler; yet his accuracy could have been used well in the limited over games.

Given a rare chance during the tour to WB in late 1983, he was his accurate self. Yet, he was not included in any of the two teams for SEA cup in Jan,1984. Given his chance, a year alter, he struggled against the strong SL batting line up, taking 1/86 from 18 overs.

Later in the decade, he got heavily involved in the formation of the GMCC team in the Dhaka League.

 

 

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