Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam is enjoying every moment of his new found success as his superlative performance in the Bangladesh Cricket League has started to get him the recognition that he was looking for since 2010. Taijul helped Orient Sporting Club getting the promotion in the Dhaka Premier League in 2010 and immediately caught the attention of the junior team selectors who picked him in the preliminary squad of the Under-19 World Cup.
A young Taijul received the first dose of reality as he had to be dropped from the final Under-19 World Cup squad in the year for being slightly over-aged.
‘It was quite hard for me to accept what happened with me,’ Taijul told New Age on Friday.
‘I was hopeful of being included in the squad only to know later that I was over-aged,’ said Taijul.
‘It was the first platform as far I was concerned and to be left out in this manner was disheartening,’ said Taijul.
Taijul however made his debut for Rajshahi next year and picked up 14 wickets in three matches to announce his arrival.
However, until the ongoing season, when he picked up five or more wickets in five consecutive innings, Taijul never got into the limelight.
‘I am enjoying every bit of my recent success,’ said Taijul. ‘Luck was not on my side previously. But as it is smiling on me now I am enjoying every moment of it,’ he added.
His journey in first-class cricket, however, was not as easy as one would have expected.
Hailing from Natore, Taijul had to travel to Rajshahi daily for training as there was no practice opportunity in his home city.
‘I did not have any other option but to follow that daily routine just to avail practice opportunity,’ he said.
‘It was during those days that my desire to become a cricketer got more intense,’ he said.
His hard work paid off as he was included in the Bangladesh Under-23 squad for the Asian Cricket Council Emerging Teams Cup in 2013.
In a country where left-arm spinners are as common as Miss Worlds are in India, Taijul, is now on the brink of getting his first call-up to the national side, though he is not taking it for granted.
‘I just think that I need to play well in order to get a place in the national team,’ he said.
‘I don’t do anything different. It’s just that I want to achieve something by performing well. Whenever I bowl I just try to concentrate on bowling on the right spot,’ he added.
-With New Age input
