A partnership built on the basics

In the age of the turf singeing four and the huge six, the humble single is often overlooked. But at 33 for four, boundaries and sixes were justifiably far from Shakib Al Hasan and Mahmudullah Riyad's minds. The expert manner in which the duo kept picking the singles and doubles was what made the difference in their mammoth 224-run partnership. 

Among the four big batsmen of Bangladesh  -- the other two being Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim -- the Shakib-Mahmudullah association is not a very high-scoring one, as they have only had two century partnerships, with the last one coming in January 2011. Yesterday, it was hard to see why. The duo notched the highest Bangladesh partnership for any wicket, the highest Championship Trophy fifth-wicket stand and also the highest ODI partnership at Sophia Gardens.