Home ›› 14 Jun 2022 ›› Sport
Rangpur Shishuniketan High School wrote off their unsuccessful 2019 title bid as their premium leg-spinner Shaikh Imtiaz Shihab turned the tide in the final, bringing the title home for his school on Monday at the Shamsuzzoha Cricket Stadium in Narayanganj.
Batting first, Shishu Niketan posted 102 runs on the board and won the match by 60 runs as Meherpur Govt High School crumbled for 43, courtesy of a leg-spinning masterclass from youngster Shihab. The leggie turned the match on its head, returning with figures of 5-14.
Having spun webs around the opposition batters, Shihab revealed that he had planned on producing stellar performances in every match he played in. The young captain bagged three awards- Player of the match, Best bowler, and the Player of the Tournament. He finished the tournament with 33 wickets, including three five-wicket hauls and an eight-wicket haul.
“My mission was to perform in every match. My aim was to become the highest wicket-taker. I wanted to take fifers in every match. It has been a very good journey,” he said.
He expressed his desire on representing the national team.
“My target is to play for the national team. Since Bangladesh don’t have a leg-spinner, I am trying to prepare myself to reach my target,” he added.
Shihab managed to catch the eyes of Bangladesh Cricket Board selector Habibul Bashar, who said that the emergence of leg-spinners in such competitions was a positive sign.
“It is very important to see a handful of leg-spinners coming up and performing. It’s a good sign for us. Shihab was very impressive today,” he said.
Nasir Hasan Akash, coach of Rangpur Shishu Niketan, sees great potential in his wrist-spinners.
“I would say that we have become an epicentre for leg-spinners. I have nurtured at least five solid leg-spinners, who I believe will represent Bangladesh,” he told The Business Post.
For Shihab, the path is only forward as BCB promised new programs for young talents, which would provide better opportunities. A shortlist of 100 top performers will be made, out of which 15 would go on to an All-star program. National age-level teams will also be made as BCB hopes to organise foreign tours for the young talents in the near future.
