Bangladesh pacer Shoriful Islam is set to play in his first overseas franchise Twenty20 League, the Lanka Premier League (LPL), which will begin on 30 July. Before leaving for Sri Lanka to join the Colombo Strikers, the young pacer spoke to Prothom Alo over the phone about his recent performances in international cricket and shared his excitement for the LPL.
Q :
You are going to play in an overseas franchise league for the first time. How are you feeling?
I’m really excited. My flight is at noon tomorrow (Saturday). I want to thank BCB for allowing me to participate. I’m going to play in Sri Lanka, a few days later the Asia Cup will also take place in Sri Lanka. Naturally, that experience will help me.
Q :
I’ve heard that at one point two LPL franchises were trying to sign you?
Yes, Taskin (Ahmed) bhai was supposed to play for Dambulla Aura. Later when Taskin bhai refused, Dambulla also tried to sign me. Their bowling coach is Shaun Tait, who I worked with in the BPL when I played for Chattogram Challengers. I still hadn’t received the official offer letter from Colombo. So Shaun told me, if you don’t play for Colombo, come to Dambulla. In the end, I signed for Colombo.
Q :
Just one year ago, you were injured and had lost your place in the team…
It was a really difficult period. But I didn’t lose hope. I didn’t get despondent. I had some fitness issues, which I recovered from. I would always be in constant contact with Taskin bhai. I would speak with the trainers. I used to do everything they would instruct me to do. When I returned, I became really conscious about my bowling workload. Now, I’m doing everything in a planned way.
Q :
When you debuted in 2021, you played in every format. But since returning from injury, you are being played selectively…
Hathruru sir (coach Chandika Hathurusingha) always says this. I have to manage my workload in a way so that I remain fit heading into the World Cup.
Q :
You have played in two Tests this year. How much did those two Tests help you to regain your rhythm?
I thanked the coach for picking me in the Test team. I wanted to play Test cricket. I felt that if I played a Test I would regain my rhythm quicker. If I did well in Tests, it would be easier for me to do well in the other two formats.
Q :
You have bowled really aggressively with the new ball recently. In the Afghanistan series, you basically finished the match in one spell. It was your career-best bowling…
I wasn’t picked for the first two matches of the Afghanistan (ODI) series. I had to sit back and watch the matches. I saw their bowlers doing many things against our players. I can’t control myself when I see these things (smiles). No matter how calm I am outside of the field, I automatically get aggressive in such situations. I didn’t like their behaviour towards us in the first two matches. So I wanted to return the favour.
Q :
Have you added any new skill in your arsenal in the last year?
Yes, I’ve learnt how to bring the ball into the batsman. But still I haven’t fully developed that ball. I need to reach a level where I can bring it back in whenever I want to. I’m doing that in the nets. It’s coming off quite well in the practice. Now I want to do it consistently in the matches.
Q :
Do you have any thoughts about the Asia Cup and the World Cup?
Not right now, there is still some time. Right now, I’m only thinking about what’s next. But if I get an opportunity, I will definitely try to win something big for my country. The entire team always has the same goal before a global tournament. I’m no different.
*This interview appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ashfaq-Ul-Alam Niloy