Tamim can apply Rohit’s mantra to stay on top
Tamim Iqbal's role as an opener has changed over the years. The left-hander that started as a flamboyant hard-hitting batsman has now turned to a more matured and experienced opening batsman who wants to bat longer and play big knocks.
However, recently there has been a lot of criticism towards the left-hander for his slow build-up to the innings. His strike rate during the ICC World Cup 2019 also came under question as the cricketer did not have a great time with the bat.
Tamim's role for Bangladesh could be compared to that of India opener Rohit Sharma, who also has gradually opted for consistency instead of flashy starts in his career especially in the fifty over format.
Tamim, who has been appointed as the new ODI captain for the Tigers, has recently been in news for his social media live appearances with his fellow teammates and former cricketers discussing various topics during the coronavirus pandemic.
Tamim went beyond borders to have a chat with the former South African skipper Faf du Plessis last Wednesday.
The guest for his latest show on Friday night was Rohit where the right-handed opener informed that he prefers to take some time initially when he goes out to bat as he replied to Tamim's query over his approach while opening the innings.
"I was not a regular opener and I started opening in 2013 during the Champions Trophy in England. Talking about mindset, I made quite a few mistakes initially in my career in the first five-six years batting at the middle order. But I have realised those mistakes are not going to take me anywhere so I have to bring some change and bring some discipline into my game. As you (Tamim Iqbal) are also an opener so there are few things which I keep in my mind while batting.
"I like to take my time initially where I get a lot of help from Shikhar Dhawan who is naturally a very attacking batsman. He likes to play ground shots and find gaps that are his strength. So I try to give a lot of strikes to him initially. My job is to bat as long as possible till 45 to 48th over as much as possible and that is what I think when I bat," said Rohit, who also went on to add that his plans do change while chasing more than 300 runs as he looks to score quickly from the start.
Both Tamim and Rohit have developed into world class openers after the 2015 World Cup. Rohit scored 22 out of his 29 hundreds after the 2015 world Cup while Tamim struck nine out of his 13 hundreds since then.
Rohit has scored 4896 runs in 88 innings at an average of 62.75 after the 2015 World Cup while Tamim is not far behind having scored 3077 runs in 65 innings at an average of 53.98.
Rohit has however taken himself to another level when it comes to converting hundreds into double hundreds as the 33-year-old is the only batsman in the history to smash three double hundreds in ODIs with the record highest individual score of 264 runs.
Even Tamim mentioned during the Live show about the time he had dropped Rohit, who was just on nine, during their encounter at Edgbaston in the ICC World Cup last year.
Tamim admitted to the Indian superstar on Friday that once Rohit had crossed forty, the left-hander realised that he is going to pay for it badly. And Tamim did pay for it as Rohit went on to smash a century against Bangladesh as India won that game by 28 runs.
Tamim jokingly asked Rohit what happens to him once he reaches a hundred as the right-hander seems to be unstoppable after reaching the three digits.
"We tend to remain nervous at the start but once you reach a hundred you should enjoy the game as the nervousness vanishes by the time. Once you reach the hundred then it's your game unless you make a mistake you won't get out. When your time is not going well you will be dismissed in a very good delivery or even get a bad decision against you. So when I reach a hundred I think about those things.
"But even after reaching my hundred, I don't go all out [attack] until the 40th over as I try to play my normal game. But if it's 43rd or 45th over then I will go all out but that also depends on who I am batting with. Suppose if I am with a tail-ender then it's different but if there is a middle-order at the crease with another batsman to come then I will take the chance a bit early," Rohit said.
With the added responsibility of the ODI captaincy on Tamim, the left-hander will surely want to follow the footsteps of Rohit to remain in the list of the world-class openers which will certainly help him to lead from the front and win matches for Bangladesh.
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