Rajshahi:Naim Sheikh and Mahfijul Islam Robin have bolstered their prospects for the national team by scoring double centuries in the National Cricket League (NCL). Their remarkable performances come as Bangladesh prepares for the first Test against the West Indies.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Naim scored an impressive 282 runs for Dhaka against Rajshahi at the Rajshahi Divisional Stadium. On the same day, Mahfijul Islam remained unbeaten with 217 runs for Mymensingh against Chittagong in Bogra district. These performances are timely as chief selector Habibul Bashar recently announced a 15-member squad for the first Test, which includes only two specialist openers, Tanzid Hasan Tamim and Shadman Islam. Bashar had noted that other candidates would be evaluated based on their NCL performances.
Naim, who resumed the second day on 171 not out, went on to score 282 runs, surpassing his previous career-best first-class score of 180. His innings included 21 fours and seven sixes, with a total of 369 deliveries faced, before being caught at cover off spinner Rahim Ahmed. Meanwhile, Mahfijul extended his first-day score of 156 to an unbeaten 217, contributing to Mymensingh's declaration at 465-7 at Shaheed Chandu Stadium in Bogra. His 351-ball innings included 20 fours and two sixes.
Mahfijul had recently played for the BCB XI in a two-day warm-up match against the West Indies, though he managed only 4 runs in that outing.