Tanvir Islam credits skipper Mehidy for defending 248 as Bangladesh eight-game losing streak in the ODI format.
Tanvir Islam took the five-for against Sri Lanka in the second ODI in Colombo by following the captain’s encouraging comments and going back to his natural bowling motion. Bangladesh stormed back into the series with a 16-run victory thanks to Tanvir’s 5 for 39 in just his second ODI.
It also assisted in ending Bangladesh’s format losing skid of eight games. They made mistakes at several points throughout this game, even partially replicating their batting meltdown from the first game, but one or two individuals saved them. Despite having a terrible start in the powerplay, Tanvir’s five wickets were the most significant contribution. He had been hit for two fours and a six by Kusal Mendis in a 17-run over that nearly put Bangladesh out of the game.
“When I conceded 22 runs in the first two overs, the captain stood next to me and said something,” Tanvir said. “He said that a bowler is bound to get hit. He told me I don’t have to bowl defensively. I have to do wicket-taking bowling. Thankfully, I listened to my captain. He kept telling us that we can defend the (248-run) total.”
In his third over, Tanvir bowled more into the stumps after hearing his captain’s remarks. Before the left-arm spinner dismissed Kusal in the next over, he removed Nishan Madushka in his next over after being caught at point attempting to slam him over the covers. Given how Sri Lanka slowed down for the next thirty or so overs, Bangladesh needs the DRS to get the lbw judgement in their favour.
Tanvir claimed that during the T20I series in May, he attempted a novel bowling motion against the United Arab Emirates, but it didn’t work out. After two outings—both of which were rather costly—he was discarded.
“I was working on my bowling action during the T20I series against Pakistan. I got a lot of negative feedback for it. I was bowling with the same action since 2013. I was speaking to Towhid Hridoy who told me to return to my old action. He said that the old action made me who I am. That’s why I returned to my old action,” he said.
Tanvir also said that he had to wait a long time for a Bangladesh selection. He made his debut at the age of 28, which is well advanced, to say it nicely, in Bangladesh’s context. “I don’t consider age to be a factor. I always considered performance as the key. I never played age-level cricket. I kicked things off from the Dhaka league. I always believed I could take my career forward through this route. I kept trying and finally Allah has smiled at me. I have a five-wicket haul at the international level,” he said.