Bangladesh all-rounder Saifuddin has been considered as one of the main weapons for Tigers’ bowling armoury in the upcoming format and the right hander is ready to face to the hard challenge ahead.
The talented all-rounder’s reputation as a death-overs bowler has grown in recent times as he was in good rhythm in last season’s Bangladesh Premier League and Dhaka Premier League.
Saifuddin took 20 wickets in BPL 6 with an economy rate of 7.73 last season. He played an outstanding season with Abahani Limited just before the World Cup and helped them to win the DPL. Saifuddin took 25 wickets in 13 innings in the DPL with an economy rate of 4.58.
But the start of his international career was not impressive as the young gun faced the music in his debut series against South Africa away on 2017. In the second T20I of that series, Saifuddin conceded five sixes in five consecutive balls in an over against Proteas’ power hitter David Miller.
Just after a few weeks after the bitter experience, Saifuddin felt the wrath again by conceding 32 runs against Darren Sammy in an over. This time, playing in a BPL 5 match for Comilla Victorians.
But the all-rounder has shown massive improvement in recent months as his recent performances in the domestic circuit showed. However, his bowling in slog overs during World Cup matches against tougher opposition is the biggest challenge he will ever face in his career. And he is preparing himself to perform well.
“Maybe at the beginning [bowling at the death] was not to up to the mark according to my expectations. But now, day by day, starting from the BPL, I am doing well in that department. I will try to prove myself in a big event like the World Cup. There will be bigger teams here and better batsmen playing in the death overs, so it will be a good opportunity to prove myself,” Saifuddin informed during the practice session at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
“Maybe I can’t bowl at 145kmph, but I will stick to my strengths – bowling at 130-135kmph. Every bowler has his own skill, and I do too and I trust my skill – sometimes I am successful and at other times, I am not. There are some pace bowlers in England who have been doing well recently, so I follow them too,” he added.
Meanwhile, bowling is not the only part where Saifuddun can contribute for the Tigers. The all-rounder has the ability to strike the ball and clear the boundary by a distance. His hitting abilities in the slog overs is an added strength for the Tigers and he is also working on his batting to contribute more for the team.
“I am working on my batting in every training session. The way batsmen are given time in training sessions, the coach gives me and Miraz – who bat at the end of the innings – the same time. The team management wants us to score 25-30 runs,” added the all-rounder.
“We talk to Neil McKenzie, and we bat against the sidearm as the ball comes on a little quicker, so we are adjusting to that. In the last series, I did not get too many opportunities to bat. So I am keeping myself prepared that if I do get the opportunity here, I intend to contribute to the team as much as possible,” Saifuddin added.
