Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah plays a shot on the second day of their second Test against West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Saturday. — Sourav Lasker
Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah on Saturday credited his changed mindset for his new found Test form that enabled him to score his second hundred in three weeks and only third Test century overall.
Mahmudullah had been a consistent performer for the Tigers in the limited-over formats and had contributed much on their success tales, which made his position secured in the one-day international and Twenty20 sides.
But the same cannot be said about his Test credential as it took him almost nine years to end his Test hundred drought by hitting back-to-back centuries against Zimbabwe and West Indies in consecutive home series.
Mahmudullah had three fifties in his past 26 Test innings before the Zimbabwe series, which put his Test calibre under question and made his position in the side vulnerable.
‘I have brought some mental changes,’ Mahmudullah told reporters during a press-conference in Mirpur after hitting 136 off 242 balls against West Indies.
‘It suits me how I bat in ODIs and T20s. I will go after the bowling even if from the first ball. I have had to work hard in this innings, as a result.
‘I have been thinking from the second Test against Zimbabwe. I decided to take care of my mentality,’ he added.
Mahmudullah hit 101 not out against Zimbabwe at Mirpur to help Bangladesh get a face saving win before returning to the venue to showcase another batting masterclass which could possibly be the decisive factor in the ongoing Test.
‘I just wanted to bat positively,’ said Mahmudullah. ‘I didn’t want to think about anything other than that. I just wanted to score runs.’
The right-hander also felt that luck was on his side, admitting that a few decisions went his way and an edge didn’t carry to the slip.
‘I have a lot of areas to improve. I have to keep working hard,’ he said.
Mahmudullah got off to a cautious start after resuming on 31, unlike his partners – Sakib al Hasan and Liton Das, who demonstrated aggressive batting approach on the second day.
The 32-year old was initially happy with the role of an anchor before making some runs for himself, which took him close to his hundred.
Mahmudullah looked a bit shaky at nervous nineties but as soon as he completed his hundred off 203 balls with only six boundaries, he started to show his typical aggression.
Mahmudullah revealed that it was their plan to remain positive and was delighted with the efforts, which guided Bangladesh past 500-run mark.
‘I was also quite positive. The new ball was easier to bat against, which gave us more scoring options. It starts reducing as the ball gets older. We were looking to utilize the bad balls,’ Mahmudullah said.
‘The wicket wasn’t that easy to bat on but we showed patience. Boundary was big so we had to hit the ball really hard to put it in the gap,’ he said.
Source: New Age.
