A Mustafiz from the blue

A thin, lean teenager is busy ruffling around his bowling mark. Unknown to both the Pakistan openers, unknown to most of the 24,000 spectators at Mirpur, he quietly grips the white ball in his left-hand and waits for the umpire's signal. "Looks like a left-handed version of Shafiul Islam," chuckled a journalist, pointing towards his thin arms. "Wonder how much power he can generate…" added another.

As the presumptions continue, Mustafizur bowls a wide. A ball later, Mukhtar Ahmed, a debutant himself, drives one past backward point and Mahmudullah Riyad does well to restrict it to three runs. Mustafizur's fluent run-up fails to complement his placement. Ahmed Shehzad is on strike and likes what he sees.

Breathing heavily, Mustafizur gets back to his mark amidst the roar of the crowd; the intensity of which has suddenly increased ten-fold.

He starts with a full delivery pitched outside leg and jags it outside off. Shehzad, who is yet to feel the ball, carelessly makes a dab at it and is beaten. A moral victory for the bowler. Two more deliveries are bowled in similar areas and are  defended to covers. With one more to go, Mustafizur unleashes a slower ball that leaves Shehzad confused. However, his straight drive lands inches in front of mid-off.

Shehzad shrugs off the early jitters and gets ready to face the teenager again. It might be a new over, but it seems like a replay of the previous. The first ball pitches around middle and leg and angles away outside off. The batsman slashes at it in vain.

If the first delivery hurts Shehzad, the next one almost puts him out of the game. It was another back of a length delivery bowled on the leg-stump which moved just past Shehzad's bat.

Shehzad's innings is eventually put to rest by Taskin Ahmed, but Mustafizur has unfinished business.

He is brought back for his second spell in the eleventh over; this time against Shahid Afridi, a player who started playing professional cricket even before the pacer was born.

He is a touch nervous and allows two doubles. Like most pacers, he reverts to his bouncer. The result is a six over mid-wicket. He follows that with an over-pitched delivery outside the off-stump which is deemed a wide. In despair, he puts his hands on his head. Shakib Al Hasan runs all the way from long-on to calm the lad from Satkhira.

Whatever Shakib said worked well, the next ball saw him produce one of those jaffas that troubled Shehzad for so long and leaves Afridi clueless. Afridi swings his bat wildly at the delivery and the umpire adjudges that there has been a nick and sends Afridi on his way, much to the delight of  the thin-armed, unknown teenager who has suddenly become the most sought-after player during the innings break.