I kept dreaming of another chance: Rony
Bangladesh opener Rony Talukdar's stellar run in the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League for the Rangpur Riders earned him a comeback to the Tigers T20I squad gearing up to face England in the three-match series next week.
The right-handed batter made a return to the national fold following a gap of nearly eight years, that too in the format he made his debut in. The 32-year-old played in the second T20I against South Africa in 2015 where the natural opener was made to come in at seven. He managed a 22-ball 21 and did not feature in the next match.
In the years that followed, Rony seemed to have drifted away from the national set-up, away from the selectors' eyes.
It is very unlikely for a cricketer, especially in the Bangladesh circuit, to make a comeback to the national side after such a gap but Rony revealed that he always had the goal of coming back and banked on it to return on the back of performances.
He believed that performances would precede everything else and if his performance levels were up, then he would have another shot. He said that he maintained his process and kept dreaming.
"It's a very good feeling. I am grateful for being given a chance after so many years. They have valued good performance for which I am grateful," he told The Daily Star.
"I always had a target. Nothing would feel good if you don't have a target. How old am I, 32? If I am fit then why wouldn't I keep trying? So I always had in mind that if I do well then opportunities will come. Even the senior players told me," If you play well, you will be given chances. You just have to perform consistently." The seniors, the coaches, and everyone motivated me. So I kept dreaming," he added.
Rony managed to score 425 runs for Rangpur at an average of 35.42 while striking it at 129.18 helping his side reach the playoffs. He revealed that a change in mentality as an opener before the start of the tournament helped him to deliver the goods at the top of the order.
"Previously, I used to play most of my shots in the air. I looked to loft everything. Before this BPL, I trained under Imran sir (Sarwar Imran). I used to send him my batting videos and then talked about them at length. I realised that I can score runs by not hitting every ball in the air as I bat in the powerplay. If I can time the ball then it would pass through. This time I kept my focus, mind setup, and planning right. I worked on it as a whole," he said.
Last year, the selectors agreed to have Sabbir Rahman and Soumya Sarker in the T20I squad leading up to the T20 World Cup. While both were given matches, Sabbir failed to capitalise on his gift of a chance and after four matches were axed from the final squad headed for Australia, while Soumya despite an exciting start eventually came back with not much to show for in the marquee event.
The selectors this time around decided to bank on performance. But will they give Rony, who has a reputation for being a hard-hitter at the top, ample opportunities to shine? Will he get to bat in his favoured position or will it be another case of just chopping and changing?
Whatever the case, Rony has put the onus delivering. Performance is key he believes and in order to solidify his position in the side, there is no other way than to perform he said.
"The only way to keep your position in any place is to perform. The same goes for club cricket. As a player, I must perform. You have seen that wherever I play, in the BPL or in the Premier League, I play for the team. First and foremost, that is my intention. I never want to see my team lose after I have scored runs, or after I have performed. I don't like it. I want to score runs so that my team can win, be it 10, 50, or 100 runs. I know that I have to keep my place in the side by performing. For that, I have to work and get fitter," he said.