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Cover Story

Mashrafee Mortaza
49 Reasons to Celebrate

Nader Rahman

AFP Photo

This year Mashrafee Mortaza has finally laid to rest his injury demons. Having made his Test debut about five years ago, he had played precious little for the national side. Constant injuries plagued him, so much so that at one point he even thought of giving the game up. Lucky for us he stuck to it, because this year, injury free for the first time, he showed the country what it had been missing out on.

To say 2006 was a success for Mortaza would be a severe understatement. He has stood head and shoulders above everyone else in the bowling department, even the wily Mohammed Rafique. Since his comeback he has lost a yard or two in pace, but not in aggression. What he has added to his game is guile, he no longer tries to blast batsmen out with sheer pace. He studies their strengths and weaknesses, and out thinks most of his victims.

The results have been remarkable, Mashrafee Mortaza finished the year as the highest wicket taker in The limited overs version of the game. For that list to be topped by a Bangladeshi is something to be supremely proud of. He is now up there in the annals of cricket with names like Allan Donald and Wasim Akram. And much to his credit it has gone to his head, he is a member of the new Bangladesh team. A team that looks at personal records as stepping stones to team success.

Mortaza took 49 wickets in the year at an average of 20, and topped the year end list of wicket takers. But that statistic must also be supported by the fact that he has the lowest economy rate amongst the top three bowlers. So not only does he take wickets but he strangles the flow of runs, which is what ODI cricket is all about. The genuine effort he puts into his cricket can be summed up with the fact that he was upset that he didn't take 50 wickets this year, and that was after he took more wickets than anyone else did!

While he has consistently performed throughout the year one series stood out above all others. After a humiliating loss to Zimbabwe in July, Bangladesh travelled to Kenya to take on the old foe again. In the first game he produced a fine spell of bowling where he took three wickets economically that bowled out Kenya for a paltry total. Bangladesh won quite easily and he was named Man of the Match. In the last game he broke our national record for the best bowling performance in an ODI by taking 6/26. He steamrolled over the hapless Kenyans to win another Man of the Match trophy. But the second match of the series was probably his best game of the year, he bowled well to get three wickets and restricted Kenya to a small total. But then Bangladesh got themselves into trouble at 134/8 chasing 185. In strode the man of the hour, playing an innings that any top order batsmen would be proud of and steered Bangladesh home with a beautifully compiled 43, which included an equal proportion of boundaries and singles. A match winner with the ball was now a match winner with the bat.

This year has been more than just about personal records, Mashrafee also got married and started a new chapter in his life. What ever it is that he does in life, one gets the feeling that he will succeed. He has ended the year with a maiden ODI fifty, a belligerent affair against Scotland. One wonders if batting is the next challenge he is looking forward to.