Shadman bided his time

Shadman Islam was included in the Bangladesh squad following a good showing in the practice match against Windies and he said the wait was expected and had mentally prepared himself to do well in the practice match.

He was the highest run-getter in the National Cricket League this time around, scoring 648 runs for Dhaka Metro at an average of over 60. It was however not his domestic performances which landed him a place in the Bangladesh Test squad for first Test against West Indies. The left-hander's performance for BCB XI in the two-day practice match attracted the selectors' gaze.

BCB had announced a 13-member squad for the first Test but Shadman's surprise inclusion came after his 73-run knock against the West Indies attack. Speaking on his performance from yesterday, he said: "Ofcourse the performance in practice game mattered since the coach and selectors were there. The squad was composed of 13 members but I felt that if I can do well in this match then maybe something will happen. So I prepared with that mindset for the match."

Shadman has been playing first-class cricket for 4-5 years but the wait was expected for the left-hander even as many of his teammates from the U-19 side have featured in the national team for the last three years. "One has to wait to get his chance as national team is a dream for everyone. I just thought that I have to keep performing to get my chance," he said.

Shadman admitted that the gulf in quality is pretty big between first-class cricket and international Tests but opined that pace was not the problem while facing upto Windies pacers yesterday. "There are pace bowlers who bowl at speed at our level in Bangladesh as well. I just looked to play each ball on merit," he said.