Tamim's aggression revives Bangladesh

The Khulna-Jessore highway adjacent to the ground was emptier than usual. Like a weekend siesta. The crowd was light, weather hot and Tamim Iqbal was batting at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium.

His seventh Test hundred, third in successive matches, was a sign of Bangladesh's change in thought, action and spirit during the first Test against Pakistan. Having chosen to bat and a flat pitch to exploit, both he and his opening partner Imrul Kayes had adopted a conservative approach. Today though, they amassed 273 runs at a run-rate of 4.47.

Tamim looked quite assured, like he had inside knowledge of the bowlers' plans. If there was the need for a cover drive, he was leaning into it with aplomb. When it was short, he got on top of it and never let it out of sight. Every gaps, big or small, offered by Misbah-ul-Haq was pierced with ease. He picked up boundaries quite frequently because his defensive game has improved.

The unbeaten 138 on the fourth afternoon was a better example of how Tamim bats than the 74-ball 25 in the first innings. He was able to maintain his usual tempo without having to charge the bowler unnecessarily. Last year, those flays had invariably taken the outside edge. So the they were done away with. Many of his shots did take the edge but when a batsman is doing the right things at the right time, luck becomes his friend. That's how it was for Tamim.

Another impact of his batting was Imrul, who had kept wicket for 120 overs, was filled with renewed vigor. Their unbroken 273-run opening stand is now Bangladesh's best for any wicket, beating the 267-run fifth wicket stand between Mushfiqur and Mohammad Ashraful in Galle in 2013.

The five hours from mid-day to early evening was a transition of energy from one side to another. Bangladesh began 296 runs behind but are now 21 runs away from wiping the deficit off. With the final day left to play, the hosts couldn't have asked for a better position. Tamim reasoned his attacking approach was needed to unsettle the Pakistan attack and keep them on the field for a longer period. He also said that the stodgy first-innings approach wasn't going to help them against scoreboard pressure.

"When we were chasing 318 against Scotland in the World Cup, our coach [Chandika Hathurusingha] told us that if you look at the scoreboard, we won't get anything but pressure," Tamim said. "There were two ways to look at it. We could have played defensively in a bid to play out 150 overs, but they would have got us out due to our negative mindset. The other way was to attack, [which is] the best defense. We knew that we could have been caught in the boundary trying to hit those sixes or when I played the reverse sweeps [and] there would be a lot of talk about it. We just didn't want them to settle down. They are a good bowling attack.

"Imrul and I didn't really talk about going after them. We just wanted to bat in our way. They will get you out if you give them the upper hand. They bowled well in the first innings, the wicket wasn't conducive to stroke play. As a result, we also played a bit defensively. Saving this match would be difficult if we go out of character."

Tamim hardly played anything through midwicket or mid-on, but he speared cuts away and timed his cover drives to pick up five boundaries. Two more boundaries came with a turn of the wrists through square leg and a flat-batted pull over midwicket. And then there were the four straight sixes, the first off left-arm spinner Zulfiqar Babar and the next three off his nemesis Mohammad Hafeez, who had dismissed him five times previously in international cricket.

Tamim said he hadn't premediated his attack on Hafeez, that it simply tied in with the plan to remain positive.

"Hafeez is very dangerous against left-handers. If I was defending him, he would find a way to get him out. He would get confused if we attacked him, but he is a really good bowler. Today I was successful."

However, Tamim admitted Wahab Riaz's second spell, six overs for 14 runs, had tested him so much that he could only think of survival. During this spell, Pakistan spent their second review after the umpire declined Wahab's appeal for a leg-before in the 28th over. Replays showed it pitched outside off-stump, ensuring it went the batsman's way.

"Wahab Riaz's second-last spell was high quality pace bowling in this wicket where there wasn't any pace. He was reversing the ball. These are small battles that build to something big. It has happened in my career before where a quality pace bowler is reversing the ball, and I am surviving," said Tamim.

Once he had survived, Tamim latched on to Junaid Khan in the 40th over to move from 93 to 101 with a cover drive and an edge through third-man, both times going on the charge. It was the first time that a Bangladesh batsman has scored three hundreds in as many matches.

"I am very proud of the effort. It feels good to have made three hundreds. The hope is to extend this form as long as possible. Even two weeks ago I didn't think I would score three centuries in this tour. I try to remain confident despite what people are saying about me."

But he was aware that there was still work to be done. "We have to start afresh. Tomorrow I will think I am starting from zero, not 138. If we can cross the first session and the second new ball, the situation will be in our favour. But it won't be easy," he said.

Tamim and Imrul had also added 224 in Bangladesh's last Test, in November against Zimbabwe in Chittagong. The only other time that a Bangladesh opening pair had batted longer was when Javed Omar and Tamim's brother Nafees Iqbal played out 83 overs against Zimbabwe in 2005 to ensure Bangladesh's first-ever Test series win. When it comes to rearguard actions, the Javed-Nafees partnership is still ranked as one of the best in Bangladesh's history.

The Tamim-Imrul pair showed the other way of a rearguard, a more modern method of taming a bowling line-up. Tamim was the fire starter and when Imrul found his groove, he became the anchor. At 11:50 am Bangladesh were precariously placed. By 5:00pm, they were taken over the treacherous second and final session of the fourth day on Tamim's shoulder. Bangladesh would now be more comfortable riding on Tamim's speed.