Can Tigers find a way again?

The morning of September 29 must have broken with some harsh light for the Bangladesh cricketers in Dubai and their loyal fans back home. It was much the same on March 23, 2012, when the Asia Cup final against Pakistan was lost in the final ball in Mirpur the night before. But as time wore on in 2012, the pain of defeat gave way to a feeling of accomplishment born from the feeling that Bangladesh cricket had finally broken through and had defeated all but one of their more celebrated neighbours before falling at the final hurdle.

On Friday night, the pain of failure at the final hurdle in the final ball -- this time against India -- haunted the cricketers and cricket lovers once again. Like 2012, this pain too shall pass but there will be a different sense of accomplishment from Asia Cup 2018.

Defeating Sri Lanka in the opener, then Afghanistan and Pakistan in must-win games may sound par for the course for the team fans have come to know since 2012. However, winning two of those matches without talismanic opener Tamim Iqbal and the one against Pakistan without both Tamim and ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is not something that would have been expected. Making the final in the kind of heat they had never experienced before and doing it with setbacks that would have crippled Bangladesh sides of the past marks a new level.

To accomplish that, young players who were part of the support cast -- Liton Das and Mohammad Mithun -- and those who were leaders in waiting but often seemed to need a helping hand -- Mustafizur Rahman and Mehedi Hasan Miraz -- came to the fore. That, and the tremendous fighting spirit shown by the Tigers throughout the two-week long event -- not least in taking India's chase of 222 down to the final ball on Friday -- will be Bangladesh's biggest takeaway.

"Everyone may think about the 2012 Asia Cup final, but I see it a little differently," Bangladesh opener Tamim had said on September 13, two days before the tournament opener against Sri Lanka in Dubai. "The 2012 Asia Cup was the tournament where we first got the belief that we could beat any team -- that we could be competitive.

"I remember that; not my four fifties or how we lost the final by two runs. I remember how we played as a team and beat teams that no one would have thought we could beat. We beat India and Sri Lanka, and lost two very competitive matches against Pakistan."

Little did Tamim know then that it was his injury two days later, which forced him to fly out of the Asia Cup and back home, that would contribute to this tournament being remembered as the next big step for Bangladesh after 2012.

Since 2012, Bangladesh's graph has trended upward, with occasional dips. But a common feature of that rise has been the people doing the heavy lifting. Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad have been the five cricketers who have worked wonders for Bangladesh cricket over much of the last decade.

But this Asia Cup was a departure from the norm because the Bangladesh team do not often do well with setbacks, especially when they have to fight with those setbacks against oppositions perceived to be superior. That happened in this tournament too -- losing the last group game against Afghanistan and the first Super Four match against India in abject fashion were a function of them struggling to overcome the setbacks of losing Tamim, scheduling confusions and having to play three matches in four days in 40-plus degree heat.

The recovery, and the architects of the recovery, will be the source of inspiration for future campaigns. While it is true that there was magical captaincy from Mashrafe, he still had to rely on opener Imrul Kayes to fly in on Saturday night and score a match-winning fifty against Afghanistan on Sunday from number six, rescuing the side in partnership with Mahmudullah from 87 for five. Faced with non-performing opening pairs, Mashrafe took the wildcard decision to open with number eight batsman Mehedi in the final, but the youngster still had to show the courage to be a part of a 120-run opening stand with a sublime Liton. For his part, Liton was the one who had to repay his captain's continued faith, and he did so with a maiden century in the most important game of the tournament.

Mushfiqur was Bangladesh's best batsman in the tournament with scores of 144 in the opening game and 99 against Pakistan. In both those innings, however, Mithun was an indispensable foil with innings of 63 and 60 in century-plus partnerships that rescued Bangladesh from top-order collapses. 

In each of Bangladesh's three wins in the tournament, someone other than the Big Five stepped up and took responsibility. The bowlers, led by Mashrafe, Mustafizur and Mehedi, were consistent throughout and the spirited fielding was the flag-bearer of the team's never-say-die spirit.

 "The positives depend on the individuals. I think losing to India twice was something that I didn't desire. When Shakib and Tamim are back, the team will do well in the future if we can hold on to this spirit," Mashrafe said after the match.

There will certainly be heartbroken fans who will rue another missed opportunity, another last-ball failure. But this tournament showed that the ingredients long craved for outside the Big Five are very much present and the work in progress is waiting for completion with the return of the two big stalwarts.

The takeaway from this latest heartbreak is that it will just be a matter of time before bittersweet gives way to unadulterated joy.

In a Test career spanning over 19 years, Mushfiqur Rahim has accomplished more in the red-ball format than most Bangladeshis. 

In his long career, which began in May of 2005 at the age of 18, the wicketkeeper-batter has emerged as the country's greatest accumulator of runs in Tests (5676 runs), has featured in the highest number of Test matches (88) and has Test centuries in five countries, most by a Bangladeshi.

At 37, well into the twilight stage of his career, Mushfiqur's chances of experiencing new challenges in Test cricket are slimmer compared to younger players like Zakir Hasan or Shadman Islam.

But in one sense, the veteran batter and the two youngsters mentioned above are on equal terms. Just like Zakir and Shadman, Mushfiqur is right now in Pakistan for the first time as part of the Bangladesh squad for the two-Test series, beginning with the first Test in Rawalpindi on August 21.

"This is my first time in Islamabad. It is beautiful. The facilities are also quite great," Mushfiqur said in a clip sent by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) yesterday.

Mushfiqur has played Tests in eight countries including Bangladesh. The two notable omissions in his resume are Australia and Pakistan.

Not having played a Test in Australia is a common feature in the careers of all active Bangladeshi cricketers barring Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, as the Tigers have not toured Down Under for a Test series since 2003.

Mushfiqur did have an opportunity to play Tests in Pakistan in 2020 when the Tigers toured the country to play two Tests and three T20Is.

However, at that time the wicketkeeper-batter had opted out of the series, citing concerns over safety. He was the only Bangladeshi player who refused that tour.

Mushfiqur, however, has played white-ball matches for Bangladesh in Pakistan before, having taken part in the 2008 and 2023 editions of the Asia Cup, playing a total of seven ODIs.

Mushfiqur was amongst the five players of the 16-member Test squad that went to Pakistan ahead of time to take part in Bangladesh 'A' team's first four-day match against Pakistan Shaheens in Islamabad, which ended in a draw on Friday, as part of preparation for the upcoming Test series.

However, those plans got dented a bit owing to poor weather during the four-day game and to make matters worse, the right-hander also copped a blow on his finger in a net session, which kept him from batting in the second innings of the 'A' team's match.

Limited involvement in the build-up to the series seems to have only made Mushfiqur more eager to make his first Test experience in Pakistan more memorable.

"We wanted to come here and have some sessions before the rest of the Test side comes… The training was interrupted due to a couple of rainy days. So, we couldn't properly practise. In the first couple of days, we only had one net session and it was also not a proper one.

"I tried my level best [in the match], but the first innings it didn't go our way. I hurt my fingers in the nets so I didn't bat in the second innings. Hopefully, I will recover very soon and will play the first Test," he added.

Bangladesh bowlers, led by off-spinner Mehedi Hasan Miraz, had a field day on Day 2 of the second Test against Pakistan at the Rawalpindi Stadium yesterday as their efforts bundled out the hosts for 274. 

Miraz picked up his 10th five-wicket haul in the format, making the best use of the moderate assistance the spinners had on a batting-friendly Rawalpindi surface on the second day after the first was washed out due to incessant rain.

Bangladesh openers Shadman Islam and Zakir Hasan had two overs to negotiate late in the day which they were able to do unscathed as they managed 10 runs on the board. It wasn't smooth sailing, however, as Shadman was presented a reprieve (on nought) by Saud Shakeel, who dropped the left-handed opener on the very first delivery of the innings off the bowling of left-arm pacer Mir Hamza.

The bowlers delivered after Bangladesh put Pakistan in to bat first.

Taskin Ahmed, who came into the playing Xi in place of injured Shoriful Islam, got things going for the visitors with a sizzling opening spell which starred a spearing in-swinger that sniped through the defences of opener Abdullah Shafique.

Pakistan took control of proceedings after that initial jitter as skipper Shan Masood (57) and Saim Ayub put together a 107-run stand before Miraz dismissed the former soon after lunch, trapping the left-handed batter lbw with one that gripped the surface. Having maintained strict lines through the day, Miraz used variations of length intelligently. That is how he dismissed Ayub, who scored 58, as he enticed the lefty with a flighted one outside off which ripped past the bat and found the gloves of Liton Das, who whipped the bails off, leaving Ayub stranded outside the crease.

Once the tail was exposed, Miraz came back in the last session to take three more, courtesy of a cat-and-mouse game of lengths he used to great effect throughout the day.

Miraz and Taskin were aptly supported by Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana. It seemed like a regular day at work for Hasan, who vigilantly flirted along the corridor outside off-stump and maintained strict lines and lengths.

But it was far more impressive to see Rana's discipline. The 21-year-old was expensive in the previous Test and has a tendency to lose his bearings at times but he showed up, totally sorted with the task at hand, and picked up the prized wicket of Mohammad Rizwan (29) which exposed Pakistan's tail and helped the Tigers bowl the hosts out faster.

While a few chances went begging, courtesy of missed catches, spirits remained high due to the disciplined efforts of the bowlers and it is up to the batters to pull their weight from the start of Day 3.