
The most memorable scene of the 1992 World Cup would definitely be a beaming Imran Khan holding the trophy aloft. When Imran Khan, the
Pakistan captain, had picked up a 21 year old, 5 foot 4 inch Mushtaq Ahmed in the team, many people were surprised. That man Mushtaq turned out to be Imran's trump card and he picked up 16 wickets in the tournament. Another example can be Ajantha Mendis, who picked up wickets at a high frequency upon his arrival in the international scene.
[Read in Bangla:‘ট্রাম্প কার্ড জুবায়ের, চাই নাসিরকে’] Only the extremely hopeful Bangladeshi fans would expect
Bangladesh to be the champions in the World Cup 2015. Wins against the two associate sides, and a couple of "upsets" against the top nations would be more than handful for the average Bangladeshi fan. In order to achieve that, ex-cricketers Atahar Ali Khan and Rakibul Hasan are putting their money on rookie leggie Jubair Hossain, due to the beauty of leg spin and the mystery surrounding an unknown bowler. Another former cricketer and now umpire Enamul Haque Moni also selected his World Cup squad but he didn't pick Jubair. But all the legends agreed that Bangladesh needed
Nasir Hossain, who is currently out of the team, in the main squad. Rakibul Hasan wasn't concerned with Jubair being inexperienced, "Most players haven't seen him bowl so he can be the surprise package. He can bowl the googly and has turn as well. He will be assisted by the bounce in the Australian pitches.he might concede runs but he can pick up wickets. He is my trump card." Atahar reiterated Rakibul's views, "Mendis came in the international scene and picked up plenty of wickets before batsmen could read him. Jubair might do the same being an unknown bowler. Nathan Lyon got lots of bounce despite being an off spinner. Jubair will get more, so he is our trump card." Along with Jubair, both of them have picked Taijul. Rakibul said he preferred him over
Arafat Sunny due to the conditions, "Sunny has a side arm action, while Taijul has a high arm action which helps him to get loop,bounce and turn. As he is a tall bowler he would gain extra bounce in Australian tracks". Atahar said, "It is tough to leave out Sunny, but Taijul has been terrific in
West Indies and Zimbabwe series, creating several records. It is tough to leave him out. Razzak has been a great ambassador for Bangladesh cricket, but I think it is time to pass on the baton to someone else". Enamul Haque Moni had other ideas. He picked Arafat Sunny as the lone specialist spinner in his team. His logic was, "Sunny has been performing brilliantly in limited overs games. He knows better how to bowl in different situations and can field well. Razzak won't make much of a difference in the World Cup, and Taijul still has time on his side." Regarding Nasir's inclusion, all three of them had similar explanations, with Atahar stating "Despite a bad patch, Nasir's average is still very high. He is a great finisher and has proven his mettle under pressure." Enamul said, "The challenge of playing in the World Cup and the magnitude of the occasion might just be the push that Nasir needs to make a comeback. If he is dropped he might get demotivated and we might lose him for the next 4-5 years." In a side like Bangladesh where tere is not much competition for many places, 13 out of 15 players are common among all three former cricketers. Anamul being the opening partner of Tamim is one such example. Regarding the third opener's slot, Atahar and Enamul want
Imrul Kayes. Atahar explained, "Imrul has done well in Test matches and has shown hunger and determination". Enamul said, " Imrul is more matured compared to
Shamsur Rahman". Rakibul is different in this aspect, "I think
Soumya Sarkar is better because he is a flexible player; can bat in both top and middle order. Along with that his height would be more useful to extract bounce from his seam up deliveries, adding to the bowling options in the team." Enamul preferred
Ziaur Rahman instead of Soumya for the third all rounder's role, "Sumya's bowling records are not that impressive to be considered an all rounder. Compared to him,
Zia can hit a long ball in the closing stages of the innings and his bowling has also improved." Despite some personal problems, all three cricketers want
Rubel Hossain in the squad. Another starking similarity is that none of them wants Al Amin, they have banked on Shafiul. Atahar seemed to put a lot of faith on him, "We have a match against
England (on March 9) in this World Cup. I hope you have not forgotten what he had done last World Cup against England which we won." Note: The players gave their squads to Bengali daily
Prothom Alo.