Sabbir Rahman, Bangladesh batsman, World Cup 2019 Player Full Profile: After disciplinary ban, Rahman eager to prove his critics wrong

Sabbir Rahman is an immensely talented and flamboyant middle-order batsman who likes to take the attack to the opposition. He has a wide range of shots in his armoury and has the ability to thrive under pressure. The Rajshahi-born cricketer is a huge fan of Shahid Afridi. In fact, it was Afridi’s 37-ball century against Sri Lanka, which inspired him to take up cricket as full-time profession.The right-hander made his first-class at the age of 16 but first grabbed the limelight when he scored an unbeaten 33 off 18 against Afghanistan, which helped his team to earn a gold medal in the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou. [caption id=“attachment_5081281” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Sabbir Rahman. Reuters[/caption] However, he had to wait four more years for his international debut, which came against Zimbabwe in 2014. Later, he was a part of the team in the ICC Cricket World 2015 in Australia and New Zealand and impressed there as a middle-order batsman. Initially, because of his tendency of taking frequent risks as a batsman, Rahman was only considered as a T20 specialist. However, as he continued to show his prowess as a 50-over batsman, Rahman gradually became a regular member of Bangladesh white-ball set-up. In the 2016 Asia Cup (in T20 format) at home as well as the World T20 in India in the same year, Rahman was used at No 3 spot, to take advantage of the powerplay overs. And the youngster thrived in that role. Now, in the 2019 World Cup, Rahman is expected to be one of Bangladesh’s first-choice options for the playing XI. Thanks to his power-hitting abilities, ideally the Tigers should use him at No 7. He can be best used as a batsman in the death overs. Along with his batting and fielding skills, Rahman can bowl some handy leg-spin. Hence, in England, he is expected to play a key role in his team’s scheme of things. Let’s not forget that Rahman is coming back in this Bangladesh set-up following a disciplinary ban, which was imposed by the Bangladesh Cricket Board. Though he featured in the limited-overs’ leg of the recent New Zealand tour, but the World Cup will be Rahman’s first major assignment following the break. And through his on-field performance, he would like to prove his critics wrong. For all the latest news, opinions and analysis from ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, click here