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Mosaddek the game changer


Published : 18 May 2019 08:24 PM | Updated : 02 Sep 2020 11:34 PM

A brilliant art work with the willow by Mosaddek saw Bangldesh clinch easy victory over West Indies and take the Champion’s Trophy of the 2019 tri-nation series cup on Friday. Bangladesh went to the finals six times before this series but every time returned as the runners up. Fortune smiled over Bangladesh this time around thanks to the brilliant performance by other team members especially Shoumya sarkar. Both Mosaddek and Soumya scored half centory in the final.

The innings of Mosaddek deserves to be mentioned here. He came 7 down to bat following quick fall of some vital wickets, stood as a savior when he narrowed the required run rates from over 40 runs difference. Chasing 210 to win the championship in Dublin Mosaddek who made debut in 2016 in the Bangladesh team, confidently hit three sixes and a four before continuing to outsmart the West Indies bowlers. Nothing stood in his way as he dominated batting while fellow batsman Mahmudullah silently supported him.

Mosaddek hammered three sixes and a four on the first four balls of the over that cost West Indies 25 runs and the match was all but over, with Mosaddek finishing on a 24-ball 52, having struck the fastest ODI half-century for Bangladesh. After the match, Mosaddek said that they knew there were batsmen capable of hitting sixes waiting in the dressing room but since they were the last remaining specialist batsmen, it was their responsibility to take Bangladesh home.

"With 27 needed from the last three overs, we targeted that [Allen] over," Mosaddek said. "We wanted to keep ourselves ahead by using this over. [Mohammad] Saifuddin, [Mehidy Hasan] Miraz and Mashrafe [Mortaza] were there after me. Mashrafe bhai can play the big shots. Our plan was to bat till the end. I think everyone understood that we had done the job after that over. It was the turning point."

A turning point it could also be for Bangladesh and Mosaddek himself. With the World Cup coming up, and hosts England having already set a benchmark for big scores, Bangladesh seemed to have been lagging behind on that front, despite winning quite regularly since 2015. Their lack of a big-hitter down the order has often made the difference between a 320-plus score, and 280.

With Soumya Sarkar giving them good starts - he scored three consecutive fifties - in this tri-series, and now Mosaddek also revealing himself as a lower-order big-hitter, it potentially adds a missing piece to Bangladesh's puzzle.