I’m not a part-time bowler: Mosaddek
Bangladesh bounced back from the 17-run defeat in the 1st Twenty20 International against Zimbabwe with a convincing seven-wicket victory in the following T20I in Harare on Sunday.
All-rounder Mosaddek Hossain set up the comfortable victory with his career best bowling performance, 5-20.
Mosaddek, who is better known for his batting than his off-spin bowling, had never before claimed a five-wicket haul in any format. This is his best performance in all competitive cricket and also the best ever bowling performance in a T20I at the Harare Sports Club.
Despite Mosaddek’s fifer, which reduced Zimbabwe to 31-5 at one point, the hosts recovered well and reached 135-8 in their allotted 20 overs, thanks to Sikander Raza’s defiant half-century.
But Liton Das’s 56 off 33 balls dispelled any doubts Bangladesh had about chasing down the total.
After the match, captain Nurul Hasan praised both Mosaddek and Liton for showing the way with the ball and bat respectively.
“Mosaddek set the tone in bowling, and Liton did that in the batting department. All in all, it was a brilliant performance,” Nurul said after the match.
Mosaddek was also thrilled with his performance with the ball in hand. Although Mosaddek has been used as a part-time spin bowling option in his career, he rejected the label of a ‘part-time’ bowler.
“When I bowl, I never think that I’m a part-time bowler. I always try to take the responsibility of a full-time bowler,” Mosaddek said in the post-match press conference.
Mosaddek also said that he was not gunning for wickets and was rather hoping to curtail runs.
“If you look at the wicket, it didn’t have a lot of help for the bowlers. It was a very good wicket to bat on. The captain handed me the ball and told me to restrict runs.
“I didn’t have any special plan in mind. I just tried to bowl in good areas, maybe that’s why I got some success.”
Mosaddek also praised Liton for his innings which set up Bangladesh’s chase.
“In the first match and today (Sunday), Liton has provided us with good starts. It’s a very good sign for our team. Liton did everything we needed him to do for us to chase down the target. In the final stages, Shanto (Najmul Hossain) and Afif (Hossain) showed maturity.”
The series decider will take place at the same venue in Tuesday. Mosaddek believes Bangladesh will repeat this performance and seal the series.
“If we can repeat the things we did in this match, we will also win the last game.”