United News of Bangladesh

Mushfiqur Rahim crafted a magnificent 163 on Wednesday as Bangladesh posted a formidable 484 for nine on a rain-interrupted second day of the opening Test against Sri Lanka. Spending over eight hours at the crease and facing 350 balls, Mushfiqur delivered a composed and resilient innings, mixing solid defense with moments of flair. His effort put Bangladesh in control, despite a late batting collapse in the final session where the team lost five wickets for just 26 runs, offering Sri Lanka a glimmer of hope. Bangladesh, who have only beaten Sri Lanka once in their previous 26 Test meetings, are now well-placed for a second victory, having registered their fourth-highest total against the island nation. Mushfiqur played pivotal roles in two crucial partnerships that shifted the game’s momentum. First, he stitched together a record 264-run stand with captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, who looked fluent on his way to 148 before falling unexpectedly. Shanto was tempted into a mistimed shot by Asitha Fernando and was caught by Angelo Mathews at mid-off. Unfazed, Mushfiqur then shared a 149-run partnership with Litton Das, who added impetus with his aggressive strokeplay. But the duo’s dismissals within the space of nine deliveries halted Bangladesh’s push toward the 500-run mark. Galle Test: Day two called off early as Bangladesh close to 500 Sri Lanka responded by adopting a negative bowling line, focusing on the leg side to restrict scoring. Das fell trying to reverse sweep debutant spinner Tharindu Rathnayake, only to top-edge a catch to the keeper. With the ball starting to reverse swing, Sri Lanka gained ground late in the day. Milan Rathnayake led the charge with three wickets in a post-tea spell, helping trigger the collapse. “It’s a difficult pitch for bowlers, but I think we did quite well in that final hour with those quick wickets,” said Rathnayake. “We’ve got a strong batting lineup, and we’re aiming to get a lead.” Asitha Fernando, back from a county stint with Glamorgan, also picked up three wickets. Though recovering from a recent illness, he showed his class by combining pace with variety — delivering sharp bouncers and pinpoint yorkers. Tharindu Rathnayake, on debut, also impressed with three wickets, despite being used defensively for much of the day. Yet, the day undoubtedly belonged to Mushfiqur, who thrives in Galle conditions — amassing 482 runs in just four innings at the venue. Among visiting batters, only Pakistan’s Younis Khan (497) and Australia’s Usman Khawaja (490) have scored more at the ground. “Mushfiqur is a true inspiration for the team,” said Bangladesh catching coach Mohammad Salahuddin. “He might not have had big scores in recent games, but his commitment, work ethic, and leadership in the dressing room are everything you want from a senior player.”    

Mushfiqur Rahim crossed the 150-run mark in the ongoing Galle Test against Sri Lanka, and Litton Das also hit a fifty after the fall of captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, scoring 148. At the end of 127 overs, Bangladesh were at 412 for four, with Mushfiqur and Litton were unbeaten. Bangladesh were at 292 for three at the end of day one. Following an early blow of losing three wickets inside 17 overs, Mushfiqur and Shanto formed a solid stand of 264 runs. During the partnership, both Mushfiqur and Shanto hit a century each. It was the 12th century for Mushfiqur in his career, and the second in Galle after his double-ton in 2013. Galle Test: Shanto, Mushfiqur stand tall with centuries after early blow  Shanto fell prey to Asitha Fernando with only two runs short of 150. He was caught at mid-off. Angelo Mathews, who is playing his last Test, grabbed a low catch to send Shanto back. Litton came in after that and formed a 100-run stand with Mushfiqur to help the Tigers pass the 400-run mark in the innings. Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat first in this match. The tourists are missing their key player, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, due to illness.

Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto and veteran batter Mushfiqur Rahim stood tall in the Galle Test and put the hosts under pressure on day one on Tuesday.  Both Shanto and Mushfiqur hit a ton. They built the innings after Bangladesh suffered an early blow in the innings losing three wickets.  "At the end of first day, Bangladesh were batting at 292 for three, with Shanto (136), and Mushfiqur (105) remaining unbeaten." Debutant Ratnayake strikes twice as Bangladesh falters in first test against Sri Lanka After the magnificent double-ton in 2013, Mushfiqur now has his second three-figure innings in Galle. He reached the magical figure off 176 balls.  It was Mushfiqfur's 12th Test ton and fourth against his favourite opponent Sri Lanka.  Bangladesh lost three wickets inside 17 overs after deciding to bat first.  Debutant Tharindu Rathnayake bagged two wickets— opener Shadman Islam and experienced Mominul Haque.  Shadman failed to guess the delivery, which was spinning away, and fell off an outside edge. In the next ball, in another over, Tharindu sent back Mominul as well, setting up an early advantage for the hosts.  But the rest of the day's story belongs to Shanto and Mushfiqur. They forged a partnership of over 200 runs when Bangladesh were reeling at 45 for three.  Mushfiqur was particularly composed and firm. He waited for more than 10 overs for his fifth boundary, but still his strike rate was around 60.  Shanto was the first to reach his century—his sixth overall in his career, and first since November 2023. He has batted in 20 innings since his last century, only passing the 50-run mark twice in that period. With this Test, both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh kicked off their new cycle of the World Test Championship.    

Bangladesh star batter Mushfiqur Rahim announced his retirement from ODI cricket. He announced his retirement through a social media post on Wednesday night.  “I am announcing my retirement from the ODI format as of today,” he wrote. “Alhamdulillah for everything. While our achievements may have been limited on a global level, one thing is certain: whenever I stepped onto the field for my country, I gave more than 100% with dedication and honesty.” Virat Kohli explains how he guided India to Champions Trophy final  The right-handed wicketkeeper batter played his first ODI in 2006 against Zimbabwe in Harare. Since then, he has established himself as one of the most regular faces in the Bangladesh setup.  He represented Bangladesh in 274 ODIs—most by any Bangladeshi in this format.  Mushfiqur scored 7795 runs in this format with 9 centuries and 49 fifties. He has 243 catches and 56 stumpings too. Mushfiqur’s recent performance has been below average, which might have played a role in his decision to retire. Litton Das to play for Gulshan Cricket Club in DPL “The last few weeks have been very challenging for me, and I have come to realise that this is my destiny,” he wrote on his social media, adding, “I would like to deeply thank my family, friends, and my fans, for whom I have played cricket for the last 19 years.” Mushfiqur also retired from T20Is earlier in September 2022. He will now only play Test cricket for Bangladesh and continue playing in the domestic circuit.

In the second ODI against Ireland on Monday (March 20, 2023), Mushfiqur Rahim set a record-breaking milestone for himself while helping Bangladesh earn their record total run in ODI. Mushfiq scored a hundred from 60 balls, making him the owner of the fastest century ODI by a Bangladeshi batter. Mushfiq Broke Shakib's 63-Ball Fastest Century Record After having a great performance in the first ODI, Mushfiq continued this in the second match too. Mushfiqur achieved the remarkable feat of 7000 runs in ODI in the second game of the three-match ODI series against Ireland. He took the 9th century of his ODI career from 60 balls with one run in the last ball of Bangladesh's innings. Earlier in this edition, Mushfiqur's last century was against Sri Lanka in Mirpur in May 2021. Mushfiqur started the second ODI with 6945 runs in 228 innings in 243 matches. He just needed 55 runs to reach the 7000 runs milestone. While he was on 52 off 34 balls, Mushfiqur hit 7,000 runs after hitting Curtis Kampfer on his knees for a four over mid-off. With that four, he met this milestone in the 229th inning in 244 matches. Read More: Bangladesh Make Two Changes to Squad for Third ODI Against Ireland On his way to a half-century from 33 balls, Mushfiqur scored 32 runs on the boundary, and he hit 5 fours and 2 sixes. However, Mushfiqur had previously scored fifty from 32 balls against Pakistan in the 2014 Asia Cup, which was the highest strike rate in his ODI career.

The players' draft for BPL 2023 took place in a hotel in Dhaka on Wednesday (November 23). Allrounder Mahmudullah Riyad will play for Fortune Barishal in the new season of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), and Mushfiuqr Rahim will represent Sylhet Strikers. This year’s BPL is set to start the first week of January 2023. In Barishal, Mahmudullah will get Shakib Al Hasan in the team, and in Sylhet, Mushiqur will play with Mashrafe Bin Mortaza. While Sylhet signed Masrhafe outside the draft, Barishal kept Shakib for the season. Former Bangladesh captains Mohammad Ashraful and Mominul Haque did not get a team in the draft. On draft day, it was unclear if any team would show any interest in them. Read more: 7 local cricketers get direct contracts in 2023 BPL Along with Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Anamul Haque Bijoy, and Ebadot Hossain were roped in by Barishal. Teams after the players' draft for BPL 2023 Comilla Victorians: Mustafizur Rahman, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nabi, Abrar Ahmed, Litton Das, Mosaddek Hossain, Tanvir Islam, Imrul Kayes, Josh Cobb, Ashiqur Zaman, Brandon King, Jaker Ali Anik, Sean Williams, Chadwick Walton, Shykat Ali, Abu Hider Rony, Nayeem Hasan, Mukidul Islam, Mahidul Islam Ankon. Fortune Barishal: Shakib Al Hasan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Wasim, Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Usman Qadir, Rahkeem Cornwall, Kesrick Williams, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Naveen-ul-Haq, Kusal Perera, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Ebadot Hossain, Anamul Haque Bijoy, Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Fazle Rabbi, Haider Ali, Chaturanga de Silva, Saif Hassan, Khaled Ahmed, Qazi Anik, Sanzamul Islam, Salman Hossain. Chattogram Challengers: Afif Hossain, Vishwa Fernando, Ashan Priyanjan, Curtis Campher, Mrittunjoy Chowdhury, Shuvagata Hom, Mehedi Hasan Rana, Irfan Sukkur, Mehedi Maruf, Ziaur Rahman, Maxwell Patrick, Unmukt Chand, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed Rahi, Farhad Reza, Tawfique Khan Tushar. Dhaka Dominators: Taskin Ahmed, Chamika Karunaratne, Dilshan Munaweera, Mohammad Mithun, Soumya Sarkar, Shoriful Islam, Arafat Sunny, Nasir Hossain, Al Amin Hossain, Shan Masood, Ahmed Shehzad, Alok Kapali, Monir Hossain Khan, Ariful Haque, Muktar Ali, Mizanur Rahman, Delwar Hossain, Usman Ghani, Salman Irshad. Khulna Tigers: Tamim Iqbal, Avishka Fernando, Wahab Riaz, Naseem Shah, Azam Khan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Nasum Ahmed, Nahidul Islam, Munim Shahriar, Sabbir Rahman, Dasun Shanaka, Paul Van Meekeren, Shafiqul Islam, Pritom Kumar, Habibur Rahman, Mahmudul Hasan Joy. Read more: BPL 2023: Syhet Strikers ropes in Mashrafe, Amir, Perera Rangpur Riders: Nurul Hasan Sohan, Shoaib Malik, Pathum Nissanka, Sikandar Raza, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Nawaz, Jaffrey Vandersay, Sheikh Mahedi Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Naim Sheikh, Rakibul Hasan Jr, Shamim Hossain, Ripon Mondol, Azmatullah Omarzai, Aaron Jones, Rony Talukder, Parvez Hossain Emon, Alauddin Babu. Sylhet Strikers: Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Haris, Thisara Perera, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Colin Ackermann, Ryan Burl, Mushfiqur Rahim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Rejaur Rahman Raja, Nabil Samad, Towhid Hridoy, Rubel Hossain, Tom Moores, Chaturanga de Silva, Zakir Hasan, Nazmul Islam Apu, Akbar Ali, Mohammad Sharifullah, Tanzim Hasan Sakib. One of the major talking points leading up to the BPL 2023 players' draft was where Mahmudullah Riyad and Mushfiqur Rahim would play next season. Riyad and Shakib will play together for the Barishal franchise, while Mushfiqur and Mashrafe will be seen playing together for Sylhet. Read More: BPL 2023: What Mashrafe, Perara and Amir can bring to Sylhet Strikers

Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiuqr Rahim announced retirement from T20 Internationals. He announced his retirement through his social media page where he also said he would continue playing ODIs and Tests for Bangladesh and T20s at the domestic level.  The decision came after Bangladesh’s shocking exit from the Asia Cup T20 where the Tigers failed to win any match and subsequently were out of the event right from the first round losing to Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.  Mushfiqur batted in both matches and failed to impress. He managed to score 1 against Afghanistan and 4 against Sri Lanka. His failure cost the matches for Bangladesh.  “I have been grateful to have you all beside me throughout my long career. Your support has been my inspiration during my highs and lows,” Mushfiqur wrote on his social media. “Today, I am announcing my retirement from T20 Internationals. I will proudly continue to represent Bangladesh in Test and ODI formats. I am hopeful that I can bring success for our nation in these two formats.” Mushfiqur got his T20I cap in 2006 against Zimbabwe. The match was the first-ever T20I for both Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Since then, Mushfiqur played 102 T20Is for Bangladesh and scored 1500 runs with six fifties. He was among only the three players who have played at least 100 T20Is for Bangladesh.   Read: Mushfiqur Rahim completes 15 years in international cricket With Mushfiqur now retired, Shakib Al Hasan is now the only Bangladeshi player from Bangladesh’s maiden T20I who is still active in the format at the international level.  The right-handed batter has some wonderful innings in T20Is, but he was never as consistent in T20Is as he is in ODIs and Tests. His best innings in T20Is is an unbeaten 72 off 35 balls against Sri Lanka in Colombo. At the same venue, he scored another unbeaten 72 off 55 balls against India. Both the innings were notched up in 2018.  “I will continue to take part in Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and other franchise tournaments. Alhamdulillah. Thank you all. Allah Hafez,” Mushfiuqr added in this retirement announcement.  Mushfiqur also led Bangladesh in 23 T20Is and won eight of them. He was Bangladesh’s captain in two T20 World Cups— in 2012 and in 2014 with the latter was host by Bangladesh.

A recent unbeaten knock of 175 helped Mushfiqur Rahim climb a mountain. He is now the best batter in the world in terms of scoring runs in Tests at the highest average. He has an outstanding average of 58.94 — the highest among the batters who played at least 20 innings since 2020 in Tests. Even batters like Joe Root, Babar Azam and Marnus Labuschagne are behind him.  Also read:Mushfiqur, Liton stand tall after disastrous start

Wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim is set to skip the upcoming West Indies tour of Bangladesh national team. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) said the cricketer is on leave to perform hajj. The development put Bangladesh team management into further trouble as they will now have to rethink the batting order. “Mushfiuqr had applied for a leave a month ago to perform hajj. We have accepted it,” Jalal Yunus, chairman of cricket operation of BCB, told the media. Also read: Mushfiqur is first Bangladeshi to score 5,000 Test runs Earlier, allrounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz was ruled out from the ongoing series against Sri Lanka due to a finger injury. Right-arm pacer Taskin Ahmed was also out of the team due to an injury. Both of them are uncertain for the West Indies tour. Along with them, left-arm pacer Shoriful Islam and right-arm spinner Nayeem Hasan have also sustained blows during the first Test against Sri Lanka in Chattogram. While Shoriful is doubtful for West Indies Tests, Nayeem has already been ruled out from this series. Also read: Mushfiqur, Liton grind Sri Lanka after Tamim’s ton The second Test of the two-match against Sri Lanka will commence on May 23 in Dhaka. Bangladesh team is scheduled to leave for the West Indies on June 5. They will play a two-match Test, three-match ODIs and three-match T20Is against the hosts.

When Mushfiqur Rahim cracked Kyle Jamieson a cut to the off-side for a boundary in Mount Maunganui, most Bangladeshis were fast asleep.  Only two runs were needed to upset World Test Champions New Zealand in their home turf, and Mushfiqur ran into roaring, fisting bumps and hugging non-striker Momiminul Haque as he hit the winning four. The sun had not risen then in Bangladesh, but few did wake up across the country to witness the famous Test win of Bangladesh on TV or mobile screen— undoubtedly the best Test result of Bangladesh so far in 22 years. “It was teamwork. Everyone was keen to win the match and they put their hand up in all three departments,” the Bangladesh Test captain said. “We won because of the bowlers. They were outstanding in both the first and second innings. They did all the hard work and bowled in the right areas. Ebadot was unbelievable to us.” After Ebadot Hossain’s history-making six-wicket haul for 46, it was only a matter of time for Bangladesh to score 40 runs in the fourth innings of the match with a lot of overs were remaining. Despite losing Shadman Islam early, Bangladesh’s win was a cakewalk, and eventually, it came and ended a 32-match drought in New Zealand with eight wickets in hand.  The platform was set by Ebadot in the third session of the fourth day when he ran a riot taking three wickets of New Zealand in quick succession after a boring stand by Will Young and Ross Taylor. After Ebadot removed Young with a wonderful delivery that the latter seemed to not have expected, the floodgate was open and two more wickets came in two successive overs of Ebadot.  Also read: Unfazed by names, I played deliveries, Mahmudul says after his maiden fifty vs NZ