'It was my dream since childhood'

Ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan starred in Bangladesh's 3-wicket win over Zimbabwe in the second ODI in Harare. Shakib scored an unbeaten 96 runs to guide the Tigers home and seal the series against the hosts after 12 years on their soil. A lot has been talked about him, a lot has been discussed. 

But Saifuddin, who came on to bat and accompanied Shakib in the most critical of time, when the team needed 68 runs in 11 odd overs with just 3 wickets in hand, remained behind the spotlights. Saifuddin however, said one of his childhood dreams came true as he won the match for his team with the much-needed partnership with Shakib Al Hasan. 

"To be honest, it was my dream since childhood to win a match after building a partnership with Shakib Bhai. I have probably talked about this in some talk shows before. I got the chance yesterday (Sunday) and I gave my absolute best to make the occasion memorable," Saifuddin said.

Saifuddin is largely considered as a bowling all-rounder but he actually started as a batsman in his early days. He mentioned that he wanted to keep his process right when he came on to bat. 

"The team was under a lot of pressure. I just wanted to play according to the situation. I did get some loose deliveries but controlled myself from playing lofted shots as I needed to rotate the strike at that moment," he added. 

Bangladesh have already sealed the ODI series against Zimbabwe but they will be looking to clean-sweep and bag 10 more Super League points on Tuesday.