Bangladesh’s all-format pacer Shoriful Islam witnessed a few ups and downs this year due to injuries. The 23-year-old pacer hurt his finger during a warm-up match before the ICC T20 World Cup. Although he had recovered and was available for selection from the second match, he ended up warming the benches for the whole tournament. After average stints in LPL and GT20 Canada following the World Cup, Shoriful was brilliant in the opening Test against Pakistan but missed the second one due to a groin injury. The left-arm pacer wasn’t picked for the India Tests to heal up completely for the three-match T20I series against the same team. Before leaving for India with the rest of the T20 squad, Shoriful spoke with The Daily Star’s Samsul Arefin Khan about his topsy-turvy year. Here are the excerpts:

Selector Hannan Sarkar informed Shoriful's groin injury kept him out of the side, leading to the inclusion of Jakir, who has represented Bangladesh in 17 T20Is since making his debut at the Asian Games in 2023, as they went for an extra batter keeping the Indian conditions in mind.

Bangladesh Test side began their preparations for the upcoming series against India yesterday in Mirpur and pacer Shoriful Islam felt that it would be a steeper challenge than what they faced in their recent Pakistan tour.

Bangladesh pacer Shoriful Islam pointed out that the wealth of experience amongst players of his side gave them the edge in the historic 2-0 Test series win against Pakistan last week.

Nahid Rana stunned the cricketing world with his raw pace during Bangladesh’s historic 2-0 Test series triumph over hosts Pakistan, clocking over 150 kmph while also claiming his career-best figures in the second Test. Even though Bangladesh cricket has been reaping the benefits of forming a potent pace group across formats in recent years, the factors behind the emergence of talented quicks have not been focused on a large scale. The Test series triumph against Pakistan in Rawalpindi would not have materialised if pacers like Hasan Mahmud, Nahid, Shoriful Islam, and Taskin Ahmed had not outshone the quicks of Pakistan -- a country historically known as the ‘land of pacers’. What comes as a hopeful sign for fans and a sweet headache for the team management is that these four aforementioned pacers are not the only ones available in the Tigers’ pace tank. Khaled Ahmed, who was also part of this Pakistan series, Ebadot Hossain, currently rehabilitating from an ACL injury that saw him out of action for more than a year, and white-ball regulars Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Mustafizur Rahman are all part of the Tigers’ current pace battery. While they gel together in the national team under the guidance of foreign coaches, the story of their emergence began under local coaches to whom they turn to whenever needed. The Daily Star’s Samsul Arefin Khan reached out to Nahid, and the excerpts of his interview are provided below:

Nahid Rana stunned the cricketing world with his raw pace during Bangladesh’s historic 2-0 Test series triumph over hosts Pakistan, clocking over 150 kmph while also claiming his career-best figures in the second Test. Even though Bangladesh cricket has been reaping the benefits of forming a potent pace group across formats in recent years, the factors behind the emergence of talented quicks have not been focused on a large scale. The Test series triumph against Pakistan in Rawalpindi would not have materialised if pacers like Hasan Mahmud, Nahid, Shoriful Islam, and Taskin Ahmed had not outshone the quicks of Pakistan -- a country historically known as the ‘land of pacers’. What comes as a hopeful sign for fans and a sweet headache for the team management is that these four aforementioned pacers are not the only ones available in the Tigers’ pace tank. Khaled Ahmed, who was also part of this Pakistan series, Ebadot Hossain, currently rehabilitating from an ACL injury that saw him out of action for more than a year, and white-ball regulars Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Mustafizur Rahman are all part of the Tigers’ current pace battery. While they gel together in the national team under the guidance of foreign coaches, the story of their emergence began under local coaches to whom they turn to whenever needed. In this special issue of The Daily Star Sports, we look at one such local coach, Alamgir Kabir, and one of his disciples, Nahid, who came to the fore through the recent Pakistan series. The Daily Star’s Samsul Arefin Khan reached out to Alamgir, and the excerpts of their interviews are provided below:

South African fast bowling legend Allan Donald has been heavily credited for his role in Bangladesh’s pace revolution during his tenure as the team’s pace bowling coach from March 2022 to November 2023. The 57-year-old, who resigned after the ICC World Cup in India, is still a big supporter of the Tigers and keeps in touch with the Bangladesh pacers. On Monday, Donald spoke with The Daily Star’s Samsul Arefin Khan over the phone from Johannesburg, where he expressed immense pleasure at seeing his former pupils doing so well in Pakistan. Here are the excerpts:

Cricketers Shoriful Islam, Towhid Hirdoy, and Nurul Hasan Sohan have urged countrymen to stand by the victims as a number of districts have been hit by severe floods.

Bangladesh pacer Shoriful Islam has his sights set on the prized wicket of Pakistan skipper Babar Azam. 

“I’ve been sick for a few days. That’s why I decided to return home,” Shoriful told The Daily Star over the phone after returning to Bangladesh.

"I'm far from it all, so I couldn't see many things… Let there be no more bloodshed in my beloved Dhaka University," Hridoy, who is a student at the economics department of the university, posted on Facebook.

Bangladesh’s pace bowling trio Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed had contrasting experiences in their respective matches in the ongoing Lanka Premier League. 

Ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who is Bangladesh’s sole representative in Major League Cricket (MLC) 2024, scored a 13-ball 18 and claimed one wicket leaking 32 runs in three overs for Los Angeles Knight Riders

Bangladesh leg-spinner Rishad Hossain and seamer Mohammad Saifuddin along with Shakib Al Hasan and Shoriful Islam were drafted to play in the upcoming edition of the Global T20 Canada, starting on July 25. 

It has been another instance of injury troubles for Bangladesh’s pace battery in a major event.

Bangladesh pacer Shoriful Islam needed six stitches on his left hand following an injury during the team’s practice match against India last night and the team management is unsure, at the moment, of a time frame regarding the pacer’s return from injury.

Sure, Saifuddin has dished out glimpses of his talents with bat and ball in domestic competitions but can those sparks of promise in lower-quality contests be used to solidify faith in the 27-year-old heading into the T20 World Cup in June?

Bangladesh's pace spearhead Taskin Ahmed suffered an injury to his rib cage during the fourth game of the five-match T20I series against Zimbabwe, upsetting the team's plans for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the USA and the West Indies.

“It’s very hot out here but that’s what we have to play through,” said Abahani pacer Shoriful about playing in the searing heat in Mirpur yesterday

Abahani batters Liton Das and Towhid Hridoy adopted vastly contrasting approaches while chasing a meagre 179-run total in their five-wicket win over Prime Bank Cricket Club in the Super League of the ongoing Dhaka Premier League at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on Monday.