No other Bangladeshi batter has had such a consistent start to their Test career.
Zaker Ali tried to slog a full-length delivery from Blessing Muzarabani, but the ball didn’t quite make it over the boundary. Ben Curran took the catch near deep mid-wicket. A disappointing end, but before getting out, Zaker did enough to keep Bangladesh’s hopes alive — at least a little.
On Day 4 of the Sylhet Test, Zaker was practically a lone warrior for the hosts. Under pressure, he played a gritty knock of 58 runs off 111 balls. By scoring a fifty in each of his first four Tests, the wicketkeeper-batter has had an exceptional start to his Test journey.
He’s the first Bangladeshi to score 50-plus in each of his first four Test matches. Before him, only opener Zakir Hasan — who is sitting out this Test — had managed to do it in his first three matches.
So far, Zaker has scored 322 runs in eight Test innings. Among Bangladeshi batters, only Mominul Haque and Habibul Bashar have scored more in their first eight innings. Mominul scored 458, including a century, while Bashar had 334.
Zaker’s debut fifty came in the second innings of the Mirpur Test against South Africa last year. He followed that with two more fifties during the West Indies tour, stepping up each time when the team was in trouble — steadying the innings and guiding the team to safer ground.
In his debut against the Proteas, he batted at number eight. Bangladesh were struggling at 112 for 6 and staring at an innings defeat. Zaker built a crucial 138-run partnership with Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who scored 97, while Zaker contributed 58.
On the Caribbean tour, Zaker had no real partner at the crease. In the first Test, he fought alongside the tailenders to score 53. In the second, he played a blistering 91-run knock with 8 fours and 5 sixes, laying the foundation for a Bangladesh victory — once again doing it with the bowlers.
He’s maintained that same level of performance against Zimbabwe too. In the Sylhet Test, Bangladesh lost Najmul Hossain Shanto early on Day 4, and then Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam followed.
Zaker stood firm, pushing forward with three pacers. He added 35 runs off 91 balls in an eighth-wicket stand with Hasan Mahmud. In several overs, Zaker would take a single early just to rotate the strike to Hasan — a tactic that may raise questions, but overall, he remained the team’s only real pillar.
Out of Bangladesh’s 61 runs on the day, Zaker scored 37. He reached his fifty off 106 balls and hit a lone six off a slower delivery from Richard Ngarava. His fourth fifty-plus innings ended while attempting another big shot.
