Taskin happy with Bogura’s sporting conditions on one-day return

Bangladesh’s ace pacer Taskin Ahmed last played an ODI in October last year. Since then he has been primarily playing T20s. Taskin today appeared in his first 50-over game in a while in the ongoing Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) one-day tournament and returned figures of two for 46, bowling his full quota of overs.

Taskin had been suffering from sinusitis and was initially not slated to play the BCL. Later, he was named in the Central Zone squad. Having skipped the first game, he today appeared in the key match against East Zone.

“Actually, I was a little sick before and I didn’t bowl for a few days either. That’s why I increased my bowling workload and didn’t appear in the first game and started from the second game. Obviously, I’m playing one-dayers after a long time. My bowling went pretty well and I’m hoping it will get better. Overall things have been great,” Taskin told reporters in Bogura after Central Zone’s five-wicket win.

Taskin felt the margin of error is small for bowlers in wickets in Bogura, making it a very good place to prepare for bowling on flat wickets.

“The condition in Bogura is superb. The condition is very sporting with something there for both batters and bowlers. The margin of error for bowlers is pretty small, which we see on flat wickets in foreign conditions. I am playing in Bogura after a while and felt that it lends opportunity for both bowlers and batters to improve. Also hoping that Bogura stadium will be even more improved in the future,” he said.

The right-arm pacer emphasised the superb conditions at Bogura shaping the national team’s preparations for the upcoming home series against Pakistan in March.

“Just before the Pakistan series, this ongoing BCL has been going really well. The conditions are sporting, and almost all the matches have been competitive. This will definitely help us prepare for the Pakistan series -- physically, mentally, and skill-wise,” he added.

The pacer also acknowledged the crowd present at Bogura’s Shaheed Chandu Stadium.

“It was great to see that even amidst Ramadan and under this sun, the stadium was packed. I want to tell the fans that if they support us like this, our cricket will go forward and their support encourages us to do better,” he said.