Rakibul Hasan needed barely three days in a new dressing room to make himself at home. Turning out for debutants Mymensingh Division, the left-arm spinner collected 9 for 168 against reigning champions Sylhet, the best figures of his career and the fourth nine-wicket haul in Bangladesh first-class cricket. The game at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium drifted to a draw, yet it hardly felt lifeless thanks to a steady stream of milestones and small dramas.
Mymensingh, put in on a decent surface, wobbled to 21 for 3 before Ariful Islam (101) and the ever-reliable Abdul Mazid (65) restored order with 127 for the fourth wicket. Later, Abu Hider hit the accelerator, finishing 107 not out from 105 balls – ten fours, six sixes, and more than a whiff of white-ball intent – to lift the total to 401.
Sylhet’s reply was built almost single-handedly by opener Shykat Ali. He charged to a career-best 175, clubbing 19 fours and eight sixes, but watched partners come and go until No.10 Ebadot Hossain – better known for long-spells with the ball – barged his way to a maiden fifty. Their 148 for the ninth wicket is a new Sylhet record and, not for the first time, left a few statisticians rummaging for the sheets they keep in the bottom drawer.
While those runs accumulated, Rakibul was wheeling away from the High Performance End, landing the ball on a length and trusting a surface that offered more grip by the hour. His 55.3-over stint underlined both stamina and confidence; Sylhet were bowled out for 384, within sight of Mymensingh’s first-innings mark.
The newcomers then eased to 272 for 9, Ariful adding a steady 70 and Mohammad Naim 66. For Sylhet, veteran left-arm spinner Nabil Samad returned four wickets – calm, nagging, familiar.
A couple of hundred kilometres south-west, Khulna Division wrapped up a seven-wicket win over Barishal, though the match was overshadowed by the sudden death of Barishal physiotherapist Hasan Ahmed, who suffered a heart attack at the ground and passed away en route to hospital. Players and officials observed a minute’s silence; the points mattered a little less after that.
On the field, skipper Ziaur Rahman (standing in for the injured Mohammad Mithun) made 55 and young top-order bat Sheikh Parvez Jibon 54 as Khulna totalled 313. Barishal’s reply fell apart twice – 126 all out first time, 224 second – with off-spinner Afif Hossain snaring 6 for 42 in the first dig, including a hat-trick to finish things off. Chasing just 38, Khulna knocked them off inside the first session of day three.
The Dhaka–Rangpur fixture at Bogura ended in a handshake too, though it gave Rangpur stalwart Naeem Islam enough time to slide past 11,000 first-class runs. Only Tushar Imran has crossed the landmark before him. Naeem’s unbeaten 137 – measured, mostly risk-free, exactly what the situation required – pushed Rangpur to 358 in reply to Dhaka’s modest 221, built around Marshall Ayub’s 27th century. Dhaka’s second go was stronger: 333, thanks largely to Jishan Alam’s 97. Rangpur shut up shop at 115 for 6, still 82 short, when captains shook hands.
Elsewhere, Chattogram’s match petered out before the fourth-innings chase could become truly interesting, though the region’s supporters will gladly take centuries from both Yasir Ali and Mahmudul Hasan as a sign things are on the up.
Analysis, then. Rakibul’s nine-for jumps off the page, but his workload – 55 overs in late-October heat – is just as telling. National selectors like to see young spinners bowl long spells; he ticked that box and a couple more. Shykat Ali’s hundreds have often been breezy 60-ball hammer jobs in domestic white-ball tournaments; seeing him stretch to 175 in the longer format will encourage coaches who think there’s more substance than style in that bat.
Naeem’s milestone is no less significant. At 34, he is unlikely to add many more Bangladesh caps, yet his volume of runs sets a bar for the next wave. “The records matter, sure,” he said last season, “but turning up every week, setting a standard, that appeals to me more.” Numbers and attitude, together, are why he keeps getting picked.
For Khulna, Afif’s six-for is handy proof he can be more than a part-timer. His finger spin has drift and is hard to line up when he’s ripping through the crease. Conditions in Khulna helped, granted, but six wickets, with a hat-trick tucked inside, adds heft to the all-rounder label.
What next? Round two starts Monday, pitches will tire quickly, and batters may need to earn every run. For now, though, a debutant side has a record-breaking spinner, an experienced pro edges into rarefied scoring territory, and the competition already feels alive.
