Miraz takes on the challenge and pulls it off

Bangladesh all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz had a point to prove in the second Test against Zimbabwe, and he did just that on Day 3 of the Chattogram Test yesterday.

Miraz succumbed twice to short deliveries from pacer Blessing Muzarabani in the first Test in Sylhet, a game which Bangladesh lost by three wickets. Those dismissals were clearly on Miraz's mind as the right-handed batter probably knew very well that Muzarabani and Zimbabwe would do something similar at the Bir Sreshtho Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman Stadium in the port city as well.

This time, Miraz was prepared. He relished his batting and had both patience and solidity to frustrate Zimbabwe. And when he had managed to get himself set at the crease, Miraz did not hesitate to show domination, hitting Muzarabani's short delivery for a six to move to the 90s.

"I said before that I have scored runs against bouncers. At the same time, sometimes mistakes happen, and big-name players make them too. Since he [Muzarabani] came to bowl at that period, I took it as a challenge and my target was to hit a six and that's what I did," Miraz said after his all-round performance helped Bangladesh seal a commanding innings and a 106-run victory over the visitors to level the two-match series 1-1.

After scoring a 162-ball 104 to help Bangladesh post 444 in their first innings and take a 217-run lead, Miraz shone with the ball as well. He led the charge with the ball, bagging a fifer in the second innings to help the Tigers bundle Zimbabwe out for 111 in 46.2 overs to wrap up the game with two days to spare.

"Yes, definitely. It feels good," Miraz did not sugarcoat his feelings when asked if he enjoyed the best day of his career.

For Miraz, this game seemed to have been a platform to rectify his past mistakes.

"I scored a hundred and got three [four] wickets against the West Indies [in 2021]. I missed out on a fifer by a small margin, and we lost that match at this venue. I remembered that game. Now, we won this game, so it feels good," Miraz added.

Bangladesh were in a spot of bother, having lost seven wickets on Day 2. But Miraz held his own with only tailenders for company, producing partnerships of 67 and 96 with Taijul Islam and Tanzim Hasan Sakib to score just his second Test ton.

He became just the third player from Bangladesh to get five wickets and hit a ton in the same Test, matching the feats of Sohag Gazi and Shakib Al Hasan, who attained the feat twice.

Miraz also attained the feat of becoming the fifth-fastest to 2000 Test runs and 200 wickets. His Test batting may not have garnered as much praise as his bowling, and while he is often being compared to Shakib, the all-rounder felt that his batting has improved out of necessity.

"The thing is that Shakib bhai has achieved a lot, and this question [comparison with Shakib] is asked a lot. Shakib bhai played his role, and when I started my career, I started as a bowler. With hard work, I was able to bring my batting up to a certain position. I improved my batting since I understood that it would help the team," he said.

Miraz, however, was not altogether enjoying a purple patch with the ball since the Test in Rawalpindi last year. Three fifers in this series alone significantly established his effort to contribute equally with bat and ball.

Now, with Shakib and a few other seniors out of the scene, the important thing for Miraz would be to deliver on the challenge of "taking more responsibility" in the coming days, especially after he reiterated the same thing once again yesterday.