Once the face of Bangladesh cricket, Mohammad Ashraful now wears a different hat.
International cricket has long deserted him due to spot-fixing allegations during the 2013 Bangladesh Premier League. But the former batsman, who many considered more talented than even current captain Shakib-Al Hasan, has found another way to remain involved with cricket at the highest level.
At present, the 39-year-old, who has represented Bangladesh in 61 Tests, 177 ODIs and 23 T20Is, is an expert and analyst for Bangladeshi television channel TSports, following Shakib and Co. to all venues of the ongoing World Cup.
“Yeah, it’s a bit of a new experience, which I’m certainly enjoying,” the amiable Ashraful, present at the Eden media box during Saturday’s Bangladesh-Netherlands match, told The Telegraph.
“I won’t say I’m finding analysis all too new or too difficult. Since childhood, I would watch and follow the game deeply and try to analyse and make some kind of assessment. So, I would say that has helped.
“First and foremost though, you need to watch all the games and keep track of what’s happening. Otherwise, the job gets tougher and you just don’t do it well enough,” Ashraful said.
A hundred against Sri Lanka in his debut Test in Colombo 22 years ago and an even more fluent 158 not out in the first innings versus India in Chittagong three years later were followed by a splendid 100 against the likes of Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie, which led Bangladesh to their maiden ODI win over Australia in June 2005
in Cardiff.
Those were still Bangladesh’s early days on the international circuit, but Ashraful seemed well on course to stardom till losing his way a few years later.
Not wishing to recall much of the past, he said: “I still play the game. Alongside the Dhaka league, I’ll be going to the United Kingdom as well to play for Portsmouth Cricket Club next April.
“Coaching is another area I wish to pursue and for that, I’ve already done the ICC (International Cricket Council) level III (coaching) course in Abu Dhabi in May.”
That’s not all. Ashraful is the owner of a Chinese cuisine restaurant, Sichuan Garden, in Dhaka since 2011.
Talking about current cricket, Ashraful is disappointed with Bangladesh’s poor batting in the competition. Among the youngsters, he finds New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra and India opener Shubman Gill the most impressive. “Gill is a brilliant talent. He has been showing consistently how solid a player he is,” Ashraful said.
