'Take care of him, he'll take care of you'

The question whether he would be considered for Tests was never there, rather it was when?

Before the start of the South Africa series, an influential member of the Tigers think-tank jokingly said: "Let him take some more beef." That official was encountering questions whether the team management had any immediate plan for new bowling sensation Mustafizur Rahman in Test cricket.

The stunning limited-overs success and promise in his bowling made many believe that it was just a matter of time to see him in the longest version of cricket, but the only concern that was there was physically how fit the 19-year-old pacer was to take the workload of Test cricket.

But the Faruque Ahmed-led selection panel thought time has come to include the astute left-armer in the Test side for the two-match series against South Africa, when the pace department is the most vulnerable area for the Tigers in the five-day game which is a stark contrast to the ODI team.

The most loveable scene for the Tigers fans is Mustafizur clapping until hurting his hands after every dismissal; full of emotion. But when it comes to saying something about his Test call-up, the baby-faced cricketer could only say, "Hope it wouldn't be a problem to play Test cricket. My pace has increased a little bit and I am trying hard to do better."

Mashrafe Bin Mortaza however must be the perfect man to comment on whether it's a wise decision to give Mustafizur the break in Test cricket after his astounding limited-overs success.

"True, he is young but still I think it's a right decision to pick him for the Test side. He has got the potential, so let him encounter with the real cricket. He is young, so it's the perfect time to face the challenge in real cricket which is Test cricket," said the Bangladesh ODI skipper.

Mustafizur is now 19 while Mashrafe made his Test debut at 18, so he knows better than anybody else that age is not the factor if someone has got the ability and talent. But when it comes to Mashrafe, one is also bound to feel the pain after the way one injury after another simply limited his Test career and there is a notion that things might have been different had the Narail Express been properly handled during the early stages of his career.

"Yes, it's a big issue as you need to use this young bowler very carefully so that he can give his services to the team for long. You know in the early days of my career there was only John Gloster [the then physiotherapist of the Bangladesh national team] and he too was young in his career. But the scenario is totally different now as there are a lot of technical people around the team who know how to handle a player," said Mashrafe.

"Just look at Taskin [Ahmed], he is an exciting bowler and nobody would love to miss him for any format but still he is yet to be considered for Test cricket due to fitness issues. So, I am sure that there will be no difference for Mustafizur," he continued.

It was hard for the brave-heart cricketer to hold back his emotion when asked whether he had missed the proper guidance in the early stage of his career.

"You know the beauty of this current team is that nobody is selfish, so I have no doubt about proper care of Mustafizur," ended Mashrafe.