A song of ice and fire

Liton Das and Mushfiqur Rahim composed a song of ice and fire with their bats at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Monday as they orchestrated a record stand against Sri Lanka.

They added 253* for the sixth wicket, which came in after a horrific start by Bangladesh, where they lost half the side for only 24 runs.

The horrors of Durban and Port Elizabeth were beckoning, but Liton and Mushfiq blew that away with two great knocks. Liton, after missing out on a ton in the Chattogram Test narrowly, composed his third Test hundred. Mushfiq scored a century against Sri Lanka in Chattogram and registered another in Dhaka.

At the end of the first day’s play, Bangladesh were 277-5 in 85 overs. Mushfiq was unbeaten on 115, while Liton was not out on 135 runs.

During the Chattogram Test, batting coach Jamie Siddons said he wanted discipline in batting and that the batsmen who get the start must finish the day by knocking the bails off at stumps.

He must be very pleased today as Liton and Mushfiq not just survived after a horrific morning, but also took Bangladesh to a very comfortable position.

The double-century stand, put together by Mushfiq and Liton, is the highest for Bangladesh for the sixth wicket. They have added 253 runs, and the number can be even bigger with both being unbeaten.

Mushfiq played a calm and composed role in this partnership, whereas his younger partner, Liton, was a tad more aggressive. Out of his 135 runs, he scored 82 runs through square-leg and mid-wicket. His most productive shot was the pull shot, which earned him 54 runs. Eight of his 16 boundaries and the only six came through this shot, which he played with utmost ease and top-notch perfection.

On the other hand, Mushfiq played the anchor role as he mostly dealt in ones and twos. Of his 115 runs, 52 runs came from the 13 boundaries.

If Liton’s innings was the display of counterpunching the Sri Lankan bowling, Mushfiq’s one was the epitome of grit, perseverance, and dedication. He is undoubtedly the most hardworking batsman on the team, and sometimes, he faces criticism when he fails to deliver. But both his innings against Sri Lanka in this series, in Chattogram and now in Dhaka, showed that hard work pays off.

Russel Domingo, a happy coach after the horror start, came in to face the media at the end of a day of two centuries.

“It is one of the best partnerships I have seen as a coach in Tests. We were 20 for five. Under a lot of pressure. It was an amazing effort by those two batters,” he said in the press conference.

Liton is highly regarded as a batting prodigy, but his scores were not favouring him in the early stages of his career. But now, he is one of the most consistent performers for Bangladesh. Domingo feels Liton is getting successful because he brought some changes in his technique.

“I think technique is a very important aspect in international cricket. I think Liton has evolved his game. He has developed a very good batting technique. He has found a good way to prepare for Tests in the last year and a half. Knowing when to do the work, and when not to do the work. He has developed a good routine,” said the South African.

At the same time, he wants Liton to keep his feet on the ground too.

“But this is third hundred. He has a long way to go. He is a fantastic player, so easy on the eyes. He has so much time. But it is pretty much the start of hopefully a successful Test career. He has a lot of work to do. He has done amazing work in the last 18 months, but he is not the finished article,” said Domingo.

The coach also praised Mushfiq’s dedication to the game.

“ He hits more balls than anybody I have ever seen. He has amazing determination and desire to do well,” said Domingo.

The perfect blend of two opposites, flamboyance and perseverance, lifted Bangladesh from the ruins in the Dhaka Test, where the experienced Mushfiq balanced the adventurous Liton to compose beautiful poetry of runs that gave Bangladesh day which the morning really did not show.