Hasan’s fifer matches his ‘potential’

Bangladesh quick Hasan Mahmud captivated the cricket-loving crowd in Chennai with his four wickets yesterday. However, as India recovered, Hasan had to wait until the next day for his fif-for.

One by one, three Indian wickets fell on day two, with Taskin Ahmed spearheading the attack. He dismissed the well-set Ravindra Jadeja in the third over of the day, and later, Akash Deep misjudged the length and miscued one to mid-off.

Ravichandran Ashwin, who scored a century yesterday, then became Taskin's third victim. With India nine down and the number 11 exposed, Hasan finally had his chance and took it. He squared up Jasprit Bumrah, and the edge was taken at third slip, allowing Hasan to achieve a unique feat: becoming the first Bangladesh bowler to take a five-for in India. He ended up with figures of 22.2-4-83-5. 

It also meant that Hasan has back-to-back fifers in consecutive innings, following his five-for in Rawalpindi. In doing so, he became the second Bangladesh pacer after Robiul Islam to bag back-to-back fifers in consecutive Tests.

Hasan performed a sajdah to commemorate the occasion, and although he typically does not celebrate his wickets, this moment was marked in recognition of his Test five-for.

Hasan, however, had not been earmarked for Tests. Primarily regarded as a white-ball prospect, his performances in the last ODI World Cup saw him fall out of contention. His red-ball prospects seemed even more distant, but his fortunes changed with the injury to pacer Mushfiq Hasan during the home series against Sri Lanka. He repaid the selectors' faith with a four-wicket haul in the second innings of the second Test.

Judging by his red-ball performances so far, Hasan could have a significant impact on Bangladesh's Test plans, thanks to the ease with which he executes his action. However, Hasan can bowl a few clicks faster, something he has had to manage carefully due to injuries.

Recognising his potential, work had been done to improve his prospects through the Bangladesh Tigers programme ahead of the tours of Pakistan and India. Tareq Aziz, the programme's bowling coach, revealed this before the India series.

"Hasan is exceptional and one of the best bowlers. I believe there is even more potential in him. He can bowl fast if he wants and control his swing. This improvement didn't come earlier as he suffered from a back injury for a long time. He still hasn't fully recovered, but since then, he has shown gradual improvement. I believe one day he will also bowl at 145 km/h because he has that ability. Work has been done on his outswing, and we've fine-tuned the areas where batters will face the most trouble when playing outswingers to increase the chances of taking wickets," Tareq said before the India series while speaking to reporters in Mirpur.

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"When to take wickets and when to restrict the batters are aspects we've also worked on. The situation will dictate the type of delivery needed. So overall, a lot of work has been done with Hasan," Tareq added.

A bit more pace will definitely enhance his impact, but it is his potential, as Tareq pointed out, that found further expression in this Chennai Test and is now coming to the forefront. With his sheer ability to nip the ball off the seam in both directions regularly, Hasan's star may just be on the rise.