India vs Bangladesh: Modest Hasan Mahmud at the forefront of Bangladesh's pace revolution

CHENNAI: When Hasan Mahmud was threatening to take the game away from India with his pace and movement on Thursday morning, he was making a silent statement. Not just for himself but for Bangladesh cricket in general.

Gone are the days when Bangladesh depended solely on spinners to merely prolong the game. They have a crop of youthful pacers in the form of Mahmud, Nahid Rana, Shoriful Islam and a few others who can challenge the best in the business.

Pakistan felt the heat of it in their own backyard and India were very close getting burnt till R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja intervened.

While coach Chandika Hathurusingha said the other day that Bangladesh have a few pacers waiting to be unleashed on the big stage, at the forefront right now is the shy Mahmud, whose career was at the crossroads a few months ago. It's understood that after his white-ball debut about four years ago, the team management wasn't too happy with his attitude. He lost his place and was left out in the cold.

After that, when Najmul Hossain Shanto and Hathurusingha took over the Bangladesh reins, they apparently had a conversation with the pacer. His biomechanically correct action, ability to move the ball both ways and deceptive pace off the pitch made them think of giving him a recall, but it was important that the 24-year-old fit the ethos of the team.

When he made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Chattogram in March 2024, however, Mahmud was not the first choice. "Musfik Hasan, who bowls at a pace of 140 kph, was supposed to play the Test but he got injured. Mahmud was an afterthought but he was up for it," a source close to the team said. He got six wickets in the Test and hasn't looked back.

Unlike most pace bowlers, Mahmud refused to celebrate wickets in his early days. It seemed he lacked the aggro, but on Thursday, there was a hint of euphoria on the pace bowler's part after dismissing Virat Kohli. But Mahmud stressed that it wasn't a celebration. "No, that was not a celebration, it was only a simple gesture of mine. I was just happy getting the best batsman in the world out," Mahmud said.

In everything he said on Thursday, there was modesty, but he didn't lack was conviction. He still believes a fightback is possible. "Everything's not lost," Mahmud said.


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