Ashwin, Jadeja the best spin duo in the world: Mushfiqur Rahim

A 15-man squad from Bangladesh, bolstered by the return of crucial top order players Mushfiqur Rahim, Mominul Haque and Imrul Kayes arrived in Hyderabad yesterday in preparation for the historic one-off Test starting 9th February, their first ever Test in India.

Bangladesh, with a lot of experience in the subcontinent on spin friendly pitches might well prove to be the surprise package in India, where the home team has been invincible and unbeaten in the previous 17 Test matches. However, captain Mushfiqur is under no illusion of the daunting task ahead of his side, especially dealing with the dual spin threat of two of the best spinners in the world today Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

“They (Ashwin and Jadeja) are the best spin duo at the moment. It will be challenging to face them in these conditions,” the 29-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, who has played 51 Tests stated. ”But it will not be a cake walk as we also have players like Tamim (Iqbal), Shakib (Al Hasan), Imrul (Kayes), and Mahmudullah (in our ranks). They have all proven themselves against quality spinners,”

Identifying his side’s need to regroup as quickly as possible from the triple whitewash in New Zealand where Bangladesh put themselves in favorable positions only to capitulate instantly, Rahim also laid down his plans to counter the Indian line up. 19-year-old prodigy Mehedi Hassan was one of the spinners who will look to repeat his match winning performances against England.

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“He is fast becoming an asset for the team. There is not much of a difference between the conditions in India and Bangladesh. Hopefully he can put up a good show,” said Rahim.

He also pressed on the importance of improving the bowling to be able to counter the world class batting lineup that doesn’t only end with Virat Kohli in order for Bangladesh to stand a chance, ”Leave aside Virat (Kohli). The entire Indian batting lineup is strong. We have to really bowl well to throw any sort of challenge at them.”