Another milestone for Bangladesh in Mirpur, Taijuls unspoken dream takes center stage

On Friday, at Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla Stadium, it felt as though a new chapter opened in Bangladesh’s Test history. Under the team’s dominant display, the day’s biggest discussion revolved around left-arm spinner Taijul Islam — who has now stood beside Shakib Al Hasan on the list of Bangladesh’s highest wicket-takers in Test cricket.

First came Taijul’s reflections. At the beginning of his career, personal records were never his target. He said, “Every player has one goal — to play for the national team. That’s the first target. But after entering the national side, how far I would go, maybe many players set such goals, but personally I never had any such target that I will finish here or reach there. I will try to go as far as I can until the end of my career.”

On the third day of the Mirpur Test, Taijul was outstanding with the ball, helping restrict Ireland’s first innings to 265 runs. He took 4 wickets for 76 runs. By dismissing the last batter, Matthew Humphreys, he moved level with Shakib — both now standing at 246 wickets. Notably, while Shakib needed 71 Tests to reach the mark, Taijul matched it in only his 57th Test.

Then came the remarks on professionalism. According to the left-arm spinner, consistent performance is the key to surviving in the national team. He explained what is required when playing at the highest level: “It’s not like that. When you play for the national team, you always have to perform. This is a place for performance.”

Regular in the Test format since 2017, Taijul also highlighted how much they have learned from the experienced Shakib Al Hasan. Speaking with deep respect, he said, “As long as Shakib bhai was there, he gave a lot to Bangladesh cricket. Personally, he was the world’s No. 1 for many years. A person cannot reach No. 1 just like that. Of course, he had that quality and that skill. We tried to learn those things from him, and he always advised us. From his own experience, he discussed with us as much as he could about how we could move forward.”