'No clue about the milestones'

"Was it a record opening partnership? Is it the highest total? I was not aware about the records; just learned of them from you now". Both Anamul Haque and Nazmul Hossain responded with surprise when asked about their record 236-run opening stand and Abahani's record total of 393 for four against Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club in the Super League match at BKSP yesterday.

They also echoed similar sentiments when explaining the reasons behind their brilliant batting display, saying it was down to a good understanding when rotating the strike, taking calculated risks and a batting-friendly wicket.

"If it is a record opening partnership and a record total then it's really good news. We failed to perform to our potential; you can understand Abahani's strength as a team if you look at our resources, so we have a plan and we executed it in the middle," said Anamul, who scored 128 off 126 balls with seven fours and six sixes.

"The wicket was really fantastic for batting but still we didn't think about a total nearing 400 and we should thank the batsmen who followed -- Hanuma Vihari and Mohammad Mithun -- for making it possible," Anamul, who is now the league's top scorer, added.

"I think good communication and calling and calculated risks made it possible to score big in the opening stand but we didn't think about 400. We really enjoyed batting on the true batting track," said Nazmul, who hit 121 off 106 balls, an innings that contained 12 fours and two sixes.

Anamul however did not forget to credit the two opposition batsmen Fazle Mahmud (100) and Marshal Ayub (108 not out). "They batted brilliantly and I must say they lost the momentum because of the rain, otherwise anything could have happened," said Anamul, referring to Doleshwar's strong position of 217 for two in 30 overs when rain interrupted proceedings.