Tapash Baisya

Tapash Baisya, along with Mashrafe Mortaza and Talha Jubair, was one of the young quicks thrown in at the deep end as Bangladesh struggled to come to terms with their Test status. He was just 19 years old when he made his debut in the second Test against Sri Lanka in 2002, and though his bowling was understandably nervy, he soon demonstrated his temperament with a composed half-century from No. 9 - his highest score in two years of first-class cricket. Tall and wiry, with a busy run-up and a slingy action, Tapash has the potential to build on his basic speed. Having cut his teeth against the Australian Academy in 2001, he came of age during Bangladesh's top-end tour of Australia in July and August 2003. Although he had little success in terms of wickets, Tapash's wholehearted performances played a huge part in Bangladesh's avoidance of humiliation on an arduous tour, a pattern that was repeated the following year in the West Indies. He was named in Bangladesh's squad for the 2007 World Cup but was dropped after the tournament. He later joined the Bangladesh exodus to the ICL in 2008 and was subsequently handed a 10-year ban by the BCB but he quit the league after one season, thereby reviving hopes of a comeback.
Andrew Miller June 2009