20 under 20: Will Rafi be Bangladesh’s next great left-arm off-spinner?

In Bangladesh - the land of left-arm off-spinners as Kevin Pietersen would say - standing out in the crowd can be difficult at times. But Mohammad Rafiuzzaman Rafi is a 16-year-old left-arm offie who is making a name for himself in age-level cricket.

He was the player of the series in the recently-concluded Youth ODI series against South Africa U-19, where he took 14 wickets and scored quickfire runs at the death.

One of Rafi's standout features as a bowler is how he uses his height and high-arm action to deceive the opposition batters with flight and loop. His batting also seems to be a useful weapon in his repertoire and is something that can be honed to turn him into a proper all-rounder. 

And it's no surprise that he considers Shakib Al Hasan as his cricketing idol. 

Speaking with Rafi, one can see a confident young man who has a lot of belief in his ability and what his team can do. Even when Bangladesh U-19 were 2-1 down in the series, he felt the team could mount a comeback and win the series, which they did.

"When we were behind in the series, my teammates and I were all still confident that we could win it. We did it in past series recently, where we had to come back from a game down; so we had the belief we could do it," he said.

Rafi also adds that he felt his performances would eventually win him the Player of the Series award.

"Winning the Player of the Series award obviously felt nice and I had a feeling that I'd be the one getting it after my consistent performances throughout." 

Photo: BCB

Growing up in Thakurgaon, Rafi was always interested in cricket and used to play a lot of tape tennis cricket. But despite having aspirations of becoming a cricketer, his family didn't initially have the financial capacity to get him admitted into a cricket academy.

"My father used to run a workshop but an accident limited his work and those were tough times."

That's when Rafi's older brother Rakibuzzaman Rocky started to take care of the family's finances and things took a turn for the better in 2017.

"One of the seniors in my area, Ashiqur Rahman Rizvi, who works as an advocate, one day took me to the local academy to give trials for the second division. The coach (Rokonuzzaman Rahat) really liked my bowling and told me to come to practice from the next day onwards," he adds.

"From there, I gave trials for the under-14s at the district level, before moving up to the divisional level. When BKSP held their camp, I participated in it. It was for seven days. That's what got me admitted into BKSP eventually. From there, there was no looking back," Rafi explains.    

With the U-19 World Cup coming up next year, Rafi knows that there will be a weight of expectation on the team that won it in 2020 in South Africa.

"Obviously, the aim is to win the World Cup. Hopefully, I can play a crucial role for the team there." 

Although Rafi isn't looking too far ahead, his numbers are impressive in Youth ODIs, with 28 wickets from 14 matches at an average of 15.82 and an economy of 3.72.

His batting numbers aren't too shabby either, with an average of 30.66, and he's been not out five times out of eight innings, showing he's willing to put a high price on his wicket even if he comes to bat lower down the order. 

"The main goal is to certainly play for the national team and have a big career there. But for that to happen, my focus needs to be on the U-19 team and doing well there. From there, make it to the HP and A team. Play domestic cricket and then work my way up. I have time on my hands so I have to make the best use of it." 

In a country that has produced the likes of Mohammad Rafique to Shakib, Rafi is a name that is sure to come up in the future if he can keep his performances up. The pitches are favourable for spinners and left-arm off-spinners are always given good opportunities in the domestic circuit.

He will face competition from other up-and-coming spinners such as U-19 World Cup winner Rakibul Hasan, along with the current crop of spinners in the national team, but one feels he has what it takes to make a big name for himself in the future.