CHENNAI: Bangladesh were reeling at 5/35 when Jaker Ali joined Towhid Hridoy in the middle in the ninth over of their Champions Trophy match against India in Dubai on Thursday. By the time, the right-hand batter departed in the 43rd over becoming pacer Mohammed Shami's 200th wicket in ODIs, the duo had put together 154 runs for the sixth wicket. The partnership helped Bangladesh post 228 which though didn't prove enough in the end.
While the partnership was the highlight of the Bangladesh innings, it was Jaker's celebration after reaching his second half-century from his sixth ODI that caught fans' attention. As he did against the West Indies a few months ago, the 26-year-old wicketkeeper-batter did a 'Pushpa' celebration rubbing his beard with his bat. "Most of the Bangladesh players like the movie and also tease each other by imitating characters from the movie," Farhad Qureshi, manager of the Sylhet Division cricket team, told this daily. Mamum Hossain, Jaker's brother-in-law, added more to it by saying, "It all started during training in Bangladesh. Jaker has even styled his hair and beard like the lead actor of the movie. In fact, all of us like the movie and had seen both the parts. We are now desperately waiting for the third part." Jaker eventually scored 68 off 114 and his gritty knock was laced with four fours.
After making his international debut in the Asian Games played in the T20 format in October 2023, Jaker had to wait for a year to make his Test debut. A month later he made his ODI debut against Afghanistan. Hannan Sarkar, Bangladesh selector, strongly believes that Jaker is an all-format player and can prove to be an asset for the team in the middle-order.
"We have been preparing a bench strength for quite some time now. We always knew players like Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur Rahim are at the fag end of their respective careers. With Shakib gone and Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur too expected to follow the suit sooner than later, we have groomed quite a few players and Jaker is one of them," Sarkar, who has put down his papers and February 28 will be his last day in the office, told this daily.
Jaker has grinded in the domestic circuit for more than seven years before getting a break with the national team. Sarkar said the cricketer was quite consistent in the domestic circuit which prompted the selectors to give him an opportunity. "The performance was always there in the domestic cricket but you have to translate it to the international level and Jaker did that. That gave us confidence which is why he has been given an opportunity in all the three formats."
Jaker also keeps wickets and can be a replacement for veteran Mushfiqur as and when he hangs his boots. Sarkar, however, feels Jaker has to improve his keeping skills to fill that position. "Keeping is a concern at the moment as Jaker has some back issues. But the Bangladesh Cricket Board is working on it and if he improves on the keeping then he can prove to be a very handy player for the team. He is a good batter and can anchor the innings as well provide momentum in the middle-order if the need arises. Today's knock against India was a proof of that. The only thing he needs to work out on is his keeping skills. If he does that, he can play for Bangladesh for a long time," signed off Sarkar.
It's still early days for Jaker in international cricket and with time, he can hone his skills to cement his place in the team. By then, he can continue to shine with his willow to make sure the 'Pushpa' celebration keeps entertaining the cricket connoisseurs.
