The Official Imrul Kayes Thread

[BanCricFan]

I have seen the highlights of Imrul's batting against England, again. I must say his inning was the most professional display of batsmanship I have seen to date from a BD cricketer. It was a near perfect flawless batting masterclass till he got out by the way of a runout. The way he handled the pressure and applied himself was truly remarkable -to put it in a very dispassionate manner.

Imrul has come a long way since the English tour. He didn't buckle despite his numerous failures and obvious discomforts while trying to pull rising deliveries. He must have worked awfully hard to address this as his pull shots of late are not an eyesore anymore. Infact, he looks quite comfortable and confident playing those. Imrul, definitely, has turned his weakness into strength. Is this the clear sign of BD batsmen, finally, turning the corner?

Probably, we will have a better picture after the SA game!

[Night_wolf]

i doubted him from the beginning of his career that he doesn't have the necessary skills to survive in the international scene..he is proving me wrong..i still have my doubts but now they are lot less then the beginning

[munnabhai]

Still room for Improvement

The under pressure Bangladesh side achieved the best of all possible outcomes in Chittagong after a shocking defeat against West Indies to revive the flagging enthusiasm among the cricket crazy fans in the country about the ICC World Cup.

Taking advantage of the conditions the Tigers displayed a splendid team spirit to script a famous two-wicket victory over England which was followed by a comfortable six-wicket win against Netherlands on way to keeping their quarterfinal chances very much alive.

On both occasions, the bowlers laid the foundations as the slow and low surface in the port city suited them most. But the most encouraging fact was that the team played together as a perfect 'unit'. There had been lot of talk about the team's recent dependence on two players in captain Shakib Al Hasan and dashing opener Tamim Iqbal but in the last two games it was refreshingly proven wrong after the way players like Mahmudullah Riyad, Shafiul Islam and Imrul Kayes came forward to rescue their team.

While the Tigers have made some stirring comebacks in the tournament, there are some areas where Jamie Siddons's men must improve ahead of the big challenge against South Africa in the last group match at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on March 19.

As Bangladesh vice-captain Tamim Iqbal and experienced left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak both said yesterday, the team is hardly looking at any equation rather they are charged up to qualify into the quarterfinals by winning their last Group B match against mighty South Africa. To do that, however, the Tigers' have to show much better performances than in their last two games.

It is not as if the conditions at Mirpur are much different from Chittagong, but the opponent is also tougher because South Africa is one of the big teams in the showcase event, especially they have variety in their bowling attack, so it would be a real test for the Bangladesh batting which has yet to prove it's best in the tournament.

“Definitely we are happy after the way we bounced back in the tournament to win the last two games but we are yet to show our best batting performance in the tournament. I think there is a lot of scope to improve our batting,” admitted Tamim while talking with this reporter yesterday.

“I am glad to see that everybody tried their best to contribute for the team and that's why we won the last two games. It was the result of total teamwork. The last two match result reflected that everybody has been trying to improve their performance and everybody is hungry to contribute for the team. It's nice that everybody is trying to play their part but Shakib and myself must also play our roles as per expectations,” said Tamim adding: “I'm disappointed with my performance because I failed to do something special in my home ground. I'm not happy with my batting performance because 30/40 runs doesn't mean anything. I failed to score as per my expectation and now I'm looking forward to the next group match” The left-hander made two ducks in five innings besides, 70, 44 and 38.

Praising his partner Imrul Kayes' batting performance in the last two games, Tamim said that it just showed that everybody has been trying to follow the coach's team role.

“You know that the coach gave everybody a specific role in the team and its nice to see that all are trying their best to play according to that role.”

The team has been in a good shape after two victories but despite that Tamim believes that they must focus on their batting if they want to win the big matches.

“We have to mind it that the conditions suited our bowlers most in the last two games. We need to have some big partnerships up top and in Dhaka we would need a handsome total to defend if we bat first and on the other hand you have to chase a handsome total against South Africa if you bat second,” said Tamim, who was however very much upbeat about their chance against South Africa.

Razzak also echoed the sentiment.

“We would need at least 2/3 big partnerships against South Africa. I think we are playing good cricket despite a setback against West Indies but there is a lot of scope to improve our batting. Everybody is looking forward to playing against South Africa because nobody is concentrating on any equation rather they want to win the match to qualify into the quarterfinals,” said the experienced campaigner, who led the spin-battery from the front in the last two games by taking five wickets.

“The slow and low wicket in Chittagong helped us lot but it would be a different scenario in Dhaka where we must bat well,” opined Razzak.

Imrul Kayes not only showed a rare consistency but also set an example by finishing the last game on Monday and this kind of effort will be needed more from the top order batsmen

http://www.thedailystar.net/newDesign/pages.php?id=04

[shakibrulz]

He's one of the classiest batsmen in the lineup (irrespective of his s/r). One of the few who can play the anchor role in the team. Few more batsmen like him and the test team will start winning games as well.

[Murad]

‘এখন সবাই আমার কথাও বলছে’

| তারিখ: ১৬-০৩-২০১১

 আন্তর্জাতিক ক্রিকেটে আগে কখনো ম্যান অব দ্য ম্যাচ হননি। বিশ্বকাপে পরপর দুই ম্যাচে হলেন। খুব ভালো সময় যাচ্ছে মনে হয়!
ইমরুল কায়েস: সময় অবশ্যই ভালো যাচ্ছে। প্রথম ম্যাচে ভালো শুরু করলেও এর পরের দুই ম্যাচ একটু খারাপ হয়ে গেছে। সর্বশেষ দুই ম্যাচে আমি আবার ফিরে এসেছি। বলতে পারেন পরিশ্রমের ফসল পাচ্ছি। একটা জিনিস কি...বড় জায়গায় দেখবেন আমি ভালোই খেলি। লর্ডসে আমার প্রথম ফিফটি। এর আগে কখনোই ফিফটি মারিনি, লর্ডসে মারলাম। ম্যান অব দ্য ম্যাচের ক্ষেত্রেও তাই। অন্য কোথাও ম্যান অব দ্য ম্যাচ হয়নি, বিশ্বকাপে হয়েছি। আল্লাহই হয়তো আমাকে সাহায্য করছেন।
 লক্ষ্যের কথা কখনো আপনি বলেন না। কিন্তু বিশ্বকাপ নিয়ে যেরকম প্রত্যাশা ছিল, সেটা কি পূরণ হচ্ছে?
ইমরুল: হয়তো কিছুটা হচ্ছে। তবে একটা ব্যাপার এখনো হয়নি। সেটা হয়ে গেলে হয়তো নিজেকে সফল বলব। এসবের কিছুই এখন বলা যাবে না (হাসি)।
 দুটি ভালো ইনিংস খেললেও সেঞ্চুরি হয়নি। এ নিয়ে নিশ্চয়ই হতাশা আছে?
ইমরুল: সেঞ্চুরি করতে হলে ভাগ্যও লাগে। অনেকে কিন্তু ৯৯ রানেও আউট হয়ে যায়! হল্যান্ড রান করেছে অনেক কম। আমি যদি সেঞ্চুরির জন্য বেশি মারতাম, তার পরও ৮০-৮৫-র বেশি করতে পারতাম না। তা ছাড়া শাহরিয়ার নাফীস ভাই অনেক দিন পর দলে ফিরেছেন, ওনারও কিছু রান করা দরকার ছিল। ওনাকে বলেছি একটু সময় নিয়ে খেলেন, কিছু রান করেন।
 বিশ্বকাপে বাংলাদেশের কোনো ব্যাটসম্যানেরই সেঞ্চুরি নেই। প্রথম সেঞ্চুরিটা আপনার ব্যাট থেকেই আসবে, এমন স্বপ্ন দেখেন না?
ইমরুল: এটা বলতে পারব না। তবে আমি এখন যে খেলাটা খেলছি, সেটা চালিয়ে যেতে পারলে আশা করি হবে।
 তামিম আর আপনি মিলেই বাংলাদেশের ওপেনিং জুটি। তার পরও আপনাকে সব সময় তামিমের ছায়ায় পড়ে থাকতে হয়। বিশ্বকাপে সেই ছায়া থেকে বেরোতে পেরে ভালো লাগছে?
ইমরুল: অবশ্যই। একটা সময়ে মানুষ বলত, তামিমের পার্টনার ইমরুল কায়েস। অবশ্যই তামিম অনেক বড় তারকা, আমাকে হয়তো মানুষ সেভাবে চিনতই না। এখন সবাই আমার কথাও বলছে। বলছে বাংলাদেশ দলের টপ-অর্ডার ব্যাটসম্যানরা অনেক ভালো। টপ-অর্ডার ভালো করে দিলে পরের ব্যাটসম্যানদের জন্য সুবিধা হয়—এসব শুনতে ভালোই লাগে।
 পরশু মাঠে নেমে কি ম্যাচ শেষ করে আসার লক্ষ্য ছিল?
ইমরুল: হ্যাঁ, অনেক দিন ধরেই এ রকম কিছু চাচ্ছিলাম। আমার রানের গড় কমে যাচ্ছে, সুযোগ পেলে সেটা বাড়িয়ে নেব। বড় ইনিংস খেলে অপরাজিত থাকব, তাতে আত্মবিশ্বাসও বাড়বে...এ রকম ইচ্ছা ছিল। ইংল্যান্ড ম্যাচেও কিন্তু আমার উইকেট বোলাররা নেয়নি, রানআউট হয়েছি। বোলাররা পরপর দুই ম্যাচে আউট করতে পারেনি, এটাও একজন ব্যাটসম্যানের আত্মবিশ্বাস বাড়াতে পারে।
 ইংল্যান্ড ম্যাচের পর প্রধানমন্ত্রীর সঙ্গে কথা বলার সৌভাগ্য হয়েছে আপনাদের। আপনাকে উনি কী বলেছিলেন?
ইমরুল: উনি বলেছেন, ‘অনেক ভালো খেলেছ। তোমাকে ধন্যবাদ, দেশের মান রেখেছ। আমরা অনেক খুশি।’ প্রধানমন্ত্রীর কাছ থেকে এ রকম অভিনন্দন পেয়ে খুবই ভালো লেগেছে। প্রধানমন্ত্রীর সঙ্গে সরাসরি ফোনে কথা বলাটা একজন খেলোয়াড়ের জন্য বিরাট সম্মান।
 কোনো দিন কি ভেবেছিলেন ক্রিকেট এমন একটা সুযোগও করে দেবে? এটা তো সারা জীবন মনে রাখার মতো ব্যাপার...
ইমরুল: অবশ্যই। বাংলাদেশের ১৬-১৭ কোটি মানুষ প্রধানমন্ত্রীকে দেখে, তাঁর কথা শোনে। কয়জনের ভাগ্যে তাঁর সঙ্গে কথা বলার সুযোগ হয়? সেখানে উনি নিজ থেকে আমাদের সঙ্গে কথা বলছেন, আমরা অবশ্যই ভাগ্যবান। এটা আমাদের জন্য অনেক বড় অনুপ্রেরণা।
 হল্যান্ডকে হারানোর পর বাংলাদেশের কোয়ার্টার ফাইনালে যাওয়ার সম্ভাবনা কতটুকু?
ইমরুল: আমরা কিন্তু এই বিশ্বকাপে একটা ম্যাচ ছাড়া সব ম্যাচেই ভালো খেলেছি। দক্ষিণ আফ্রিকার বিপক্ষেও এই খেলাটা ধরে রাখতে পারলে কোয়ার্টার ফাইনালে না যাওয়ার কোনো কারণ নেই। আমাদের কন্ডিশনে খেলা, সবকিছু মিলিয়েই আমাদের পক্ষে ভালো ক্রিকেট খেলা সম্ভব। সবার সেটাই প্রত্যাশা। তা ছাড়া ইংল্যান্ড ওয়েস্ট ইন্ডিজের কাছে হেরে গেলে সুযোগ তো এমনিতেই আসবে।
 দলের টিম স্পিরিট খুব ভালো মনে হচ্ছে এখন। এটাও কি ভালো করার একটা কারণ?
ইমরুল: যা করার, দলের সবাই এখন একসঙ্গে করি। প্রতিটি ক্রিকেটার একসঙ্গে দাঁড়িয়ে পাঁচ ওয়াক্ত নামাজ পড়ি। যখনই আমরা একসঙ্গে হই, নিজেদের মধ্যে আলাপ হয় কী করলে কী হবে। আমার মনে হয়, এটা একটা বড় অ্যাডভান্টেজ।

[Shartaz]

Vimrul Coyesh

I Would have been so much happier if the 60 and 73* were scored by Tamim Iqbal...

All I want is TIK and Shakib to do well...

[frd]

Originally Posted by Shartaz
Vimrul Coyesh

I Would have been so much happier if the 60 and 73* were scored by Tamim Iqbal...

All I want is TIK and Shakib to do well...

AND other to fail!!??

[Zeeshan]

Nijer iye kete jatra bhongo kora ari...tai na shartaz miyan?

[WorldCup11]

I want Imrul to face first over of the innings. Tamim got out in the first over for 3 of his last 6 games

[Zeeshan]

Originally Posted by WorldCup11
I want Imrul to face first over of the innings. Tamim got out in the first over for 3 of his last 6 games

Wasn't there some batsman who even protected Bradman from the new ball?

[Rabz]

The biggest thing we have got out of this world cup so far is the emergence of Imrul Kayes and Shafiul Islam as "match winners". We badly needed this for our team.
You can't always rely on one or two players to do it for the team every day. Everyone needs to step in. More so, the other players also need to have that belief in themselves that they can do it.

The most impressive side of Imrul was that he took up the responsibility when Tamim failed and stepped up to the challenge, knowing that he can deliver it for the country.

I can only hope that he would grow more with confidence and both Tamim and Imrul can flourish with the bat, giving us much needed stability at the top of the order which we looked for years.

[zainab]

Tamim has to learn to be a bit more careful in protecting his wicket when he opens. He should show the bowler a bit of respect early, then he can begin hitting and scoring. He has to partner Imrul, who is now taking on the role of trying to stay at the wicket for a longer period and building an innings. He can become the Jonathan Trott for BD.

[simon]

Originally Posted by Rabz
The biggest thing we have got out of this world cup so far is the emergence of Imrul Kayes and Shafiul Islam as "match winners". We badly needed this for our team.
You can't always rely on one or two players to do it for the team every day. Everyone needs to step in. More so, the other players also need to have that belief in themselves that they can do it.

The most impressive side of Imrul was that he took up the responsibility when Tamim failed and stepped up to the challenge, knowing that he can deliver it for the country.

I can only hope that he would grow more with confidence and both Tamim and Imrul can flourish with the bat, giving us much needed stability at the top of the order which we looked for years.

ya,that's really the best outcome of the WC so far.
What I like abt Imrul is that he is a stubborn batsman who won't leave the ground easily whatever happens around him.
I wld like Tamim to be a bit more defensive in the 1st few overs.

[BANFAN]

Originally Posted by Night_wolf
i doubted him from the beginning of his career that he doesn't have the necessary skills to survive in the international scene..he is proving me wrong..i still have my doubts but now they are lot less then the beginning

You had good reason for the doubt. He used to be very tentative at times, no matter how long he is in the crease. That would bring his downfall.

But he played two great innings in WC and hehas shown huge improvement in executing shots. I'm very hopeful about him. He is one player who depends more on hard work than tallent.

These kind of players are meant for longer race than most talent based players. I'm very hopeful about his future. Great going IK and great prospect for Bangladesh Cricket.

[shuziburo]

Originally Posted by Shartaz
Vimrul Coyesh

I Would have been so much happier if the 60 and 73* were scored by Tamim Iqbal...

All I want is TIK and Shakib to do well...

You don't want BD to do well?

[Shaan]

Originally Posted by Shartaz
Vimrul Coyesh

I Would have been so much happier if the 60 and 73* were scored by Tamim Iqbal...

All I want is TIK and Shakib to do well...

so, for u players r bigger than the

country and team, no matter team loose u will be happy of TIK and SHAK score big?

Posted via BC Mobile Edition

[lamisa]

imrul is like vvs laxman for bd.not too fast but always chipping in with runs

[shuziburo]

Originally Posted by Night_wolf
i doubted him from the beginning of his career that he doesn't have the necessary skills to survive in the international scene..he is proving me wrong..i still have my doubts but now they are lot less then the beginning

I also was a doubter. He looked completely out of sorts in his first few innings, but got some runs. Apparently, he has worked hard on his weaknesses and is not the frightened kid anymore. In fact, he is very much on his way to becoming a frightening sight to the bowlers. I predict that he will be the first BD batsman to reach an average of 40.

[Kabir]

Few observations that I have about Imrul, not in any particular order.

1. He likes to play himself in - gets his eye in and gets comfortable before he goes for the shots. Obviously that doesn't include those incredibly bad deliveries that deserve to go to the boundary. Given that bowlers can sometimes keep a tight line and length continuously, it's not necessarily a good thing for Imrul. So far he hasn't showed to have those occasional brain farts under pressure, probably because he can the bowler would gift him with occasional hit-me balls.

2. He sometimes tries to play too defensively with straight bat. I remember against England he played a ball that's far outside off as if he's driving the ball to long on...it ended up going to more square from deep cover. He could have driven for the covers...and that would have gotten him a boundary. I consider that shot to be a mishit, although the commentators didn't think so.

3. His running between the wickets should improve. Gifting your wicket away with a silly runout isn't going to win you matches. It hasn't stopped us from winning the matches this WC, but it could have.


Other than that, I know the coach has many things to work on with even the most technically correct batsmen. So lets leave it to the coaches. I love the way Imrul keeps his cool. He can improve a lot more. He should take the opportunity to learn from Siddons and co.

Oh, lets not forget about his fielding abilities. I assume this thread is only aimed at hearing about his batting performance.

[mbaig1]

Obviously Imrul has proved many of us wrong. I too seriously thought BD has 'invested' in wrong player and I still feel two or three innings are little less to say more about Imrul. Now we know determination and mental strength is present in Imrul but real test starts now. England and Holland had a weak bowling attack. It will be real test on how he performs against Steyn, Morkel & Kallis.

[dolcevita]

Originally Posted by Shartaz
Vimrul Coyesh

I Would have been so much happier if the 60 and 73* were scored by Tamim Iqbal...

All I want is TIK and Shakib to do well...

I want BANGLADESH to win no matter who perform

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[Rajput]

I like him.sound technique with temprament.

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[BanCricFan]

Kabir,

You're harping on his past shortcomings and, perhaps, overlooking a touch his present improvements which is staggering in BD context. I dawat you to watch his batting against England again and this time with an analytical eye. I hope you will be massively impressed with the vast improvement Imrul has made so far with his batting. That knock against England under tremendous pressure the best I have seen from any BD batsman. I cant reiterate this more. Imrul's temperament, application, willingness to fight, defence, selection and proper execution of shots, single mindedness and the contagious confidence he exhibited was nothing short than a batting MASTERCLASS. If this was a Lara or a Tendulkar, I promise you, the tv pundits would have gone bonkers. The English bowlers didn't even have a sniff of getting his wicket. Thats how well Imrul batted that day. When he defended he middled it and when went for shots it found the sweet part of his bat with precision. No streaky edges whatsoever. The way he 'pushed' Shahzad straight down the ground for a FOUR was pure poetry in motion -to put in the style of an oft-repeating beyond boredom ShamChow.

This thread was to celebrate Imruls ultra professional batting performance, especially, in a Bangladesh cricket context. Of course, there will always be room for improvements. There will also be future failures. He might get out for a golden duck in the next outing but what he has acomplished here will always stick in my mind.

[BanCricFan]

Originally Posted by mbaig1
England and Holland had a weak bowling attack. It will be real test on how he performs against Steyn, Morkel & Kallis.

Right! Australia got trounced by this weak attack in Tests. They don't deserve to play Test cricket. Thats what I'm saying!

[BCBLFC]

I have to admit when I first saw Imrul, I thought he wouldn't last, but I think it's clear to see he has improved a lot. He obviously has a role in the team, and is applying the required mental toughness and concentration to anchor innings, and played a key role in the batting chase against both England and Netherlands. It will be interesting though to see how he plays abroad, to see how far he has come.