Pacers leading the pack for Tigers

The fast-bowling department has stood out in Bangladesh's two wins in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup, and it was pacer Taskin Ahmed who rose to the occasion yet again as Tigers clinched a hard-fought three-run win over Zimbabwe in their third Super 12 game at the Gabba yesterday.

It will be hard to recall when was the last time a fast bowler picked up two player-of-the-match awards for Bangladesh, and that too in a World Cup, as Taskin showed his consistency and vast improvement of late to emerge as a world-class act for the Tigers.

The 27-year-old ended up with the figures of three for 19 from his four overs, at an economy of 4.75, to stage a successful defence of a modest 151-run target. Taskin spearheaded the three-men Bangladesh pace-bowling unit with experienced Mustafizur Rahman and young Hasan Mahmud to aid the Tigers in snatching a dramatic win.

Taskin's transformation as a fast bowler is now paying dividends and, most importantly, he has given Bangladesh the much-needed strength in pace-friendly Australian conditions.

"Look, Taskin has got all attributes of a genuine fast bowler and it was very important for him to realise what are his strengths and where to work on," prominent pace-bowling coach Sarwar Imran told The Daily Star yesterday.

"He has worked on his fitness and is stronger and fitter now, compared to the past, and he has also improved his game-sense, which is very important from a fast bowler's point of view.

"Bowling quick is the main mantra if you really want to threaten the batters in Australian conditions, and Taskin's performance behind the two wins for Bangladesh was actually a breath of fresh air in the context of our cricketing culture," Imran added.

Meanwhile, despite remaining wicketless in the first two games, Mustafizur made sure he was economical, having conceded below six runs per over prior to Zimbabwe encounter.

The 'Cutter Master' eventually showed his class by picking up two wickets in the same over, including the dangerous Sikandar Raza, and allowed the Tigers to build on the momentum given by Taskin at the start.

Mustafizur ended up picking two wickets, conceding just 15 runs from his four overs, and more importantly he had kept things really tight for the Zimbabwean batters at death overs as well.

The Fizz used his cutters and slowers tactfully to concede just six runs in the 17th over of the innings, with two set batters skipper Sean Williams and Ryan Burl at the crease, as Zimbabwe desperately looked to up the tempo.

Another young pacer Hasan Mahmud, who may have remained expensive and wicketless against Zimbabwe, also showed great promise so far -- certainly good signs for the Tigers' pace battery.

"I think Mustafizur's control was something very impressive, not just yesterday but throughout the three games so far, and this is what you expect from an experienced bowler like him. Mahmud is young and still learning and I think he showed some good skills and pace. It will be important to bank on the seamers and I would hope the team management will be bold enough to include another pacer in the playing eleven," Imran concluded.