Having built a formidable pace arsenal, all of a sudden Bangladesh find themselves in danger of playing their next series against England in October without a couple of their top pacers.
The injured Mustafizur Rahman is set to undergo shoulder surgery this month, which will sideline him for at least six months, while Taskin Ahmed is working on his bowling action and is yet to be cleared by the International Cricket Council.
In such a time of need, the Tigers will look to their second-highest wicket-taker in international cricket to step up. Truth be told, Rubel Hossain has gone through a rough patch ever since his heroic performance against England in the 2015 World Cup, which took Bangladesh through to the quarterfinal stage for the first time.
He suffered a calf injury in September during Bangladesh A's tour of India and then had been excluded from the national contract for not following his rehabilitation schedule properly.
The 26-year-old has however shown signs of improvements. He did well in the recently concluded Dhaka Premier League where he scalped 19 wickets at an average of 29. It was a good performance considering that he had just returned from injury.
Speaking to reporters at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday, Rubel said that he was trying his best to find his way back into the team.
“I was injured for a long time and I have missed a lot. This camp is my chance to improve my fitness levels again,” said Rubel.
“My main strength is that I can bowl with a lot of power. So lately I have been working on increasing my pace. During training, I try hard to match my previous pace. Judging by the way I bowled in the Dhaka Premier League, I don't think I have decreased too much,” he added.
Apart from trying to increase his pace, the bowler is also trying to learn new variations.
“I am actually working on a new delivery. I basically grip the ball in deep between my fingers and then once the ball lands on the pitch, it becomes a bit slow. It's deceptive, but I need to work on it. I am also trying to add some other variations,” he said.
While many reckon that the absence of Mustafizur Rahman may just give Rubel, who last played for Bangladesh in July 2015, a chance to make it back to the squad, the pacer himself isn't looking at it the same way.
“Mustafizur is a different kind of bowler and you can't compare me to him. I, and the entire team, really want him to get back to the national team as soon as possible. Bangladesh needs him. When he plays, the opponents are automatically under pressure, he is that good,” said Rubel.
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