Raqibul Hasan (cricketer, born 1953)

ASM Raqibul Hasan (born 15 January 1953) is a former Bangladeshi cricketer who played in two ODIs in 1986. He is widely regarded as one of the best Bangladeshi batsman of his era.[1] After retiring from international cricket, he has become a match referee. He won the Independence Award in 2023 for his contribution to the field of sports.[2]

Raqibul Hasan
Personal information
Full name
Raqibul Hasan
Born (1953-01-01) 1 January 1953
Dacca, East Bengal, Pakistan
(now Dhaka, Bangladesh)
BattingRight-handed
RoleBatsman, Occasional Wicket-keeper, Match referee
International information
National side
ODI debut (cap 9)31 March 1986 v Pakistan
Last ODI2 April 1986 v Sri Lanka
Career statistics
Competition Tests ODIs
Matches 2
Runs scored 17
Batting average 8.50
100s/50s -/-
Top score 12
Balls bowled 1
Wickets
Bowling average
5 wickets in innings
10 wickets in match n/a
Best bowling
Catches/stumpings -/- 1/-
Source: ESPNCricinfo, 13 February 2006

Early years

An opening batsman, Raqibul Hasan made his first-class debut in 1968–69 at the age of 16, and was soon selected to represent Pakistan's U19 team against the English Schoolboys. He was twelfth man in a Test match against New Zealand at Dhaka in 1969–70. Barely sixteen at the time, he seemed sure to have a lengthy Test career ahead of him.

However, on 26 February 1971 a match started at Dhaka in the Bangabandhu Stadium. It was a four-day match against the Commonwealth side. The Pakistan team was playing and he was picked to play for them. At 18 years old he became the first and only Bengali to play for a full-strength Pakistan team. The match couldn't be finished as on the last day demonstrations erupted all over the city and the stadium was invaded. Within a month of his debut, events in his homeland of East Pakistan took a shocking turn, and he was forced to flee for his life.

It would be nine long months before Bangladesh won its independence, at the cost of millions of lives. In Raqibul Hasan's family there were six casualties. On top of that, he lost his best friend, Haleem Chaudhri, who was his opening partner for East Pakistan and his roommate on tour. And he lost his cricketing godfather, Mushtaq, the man who spotted him as a boy and gave him his first chance at club level.

In independent Bangladesh

After returning to Bangladesh, Raqibul Hasan became a key figure in building Bangladesh cricket. He led the side in their return to the international arena. In December 1976, when the visiting MCC started their tour with a two-day match at Rajshahi against North Zone, he was named captain and top scored with 73 in the second innings. He bettered that, scoring 74 for South Zone at Jessore. But his proudest moment of the season came at Dhaka as he was part of the Bangladesh team (led by Shamim Kabir) that played in the three-day unofficial Test match against MCC in January 1977. This historic match marked the resumption of international cricket in Dhaka.[3]

In full ODIs

Raqibul Hasan played in two ODIs for Bangladesh. He scored 5 against Pakistan,[4] and 12 against Sri Lanka[5] in the second Asia Cup in 1986.

In ICC Trophy

Raqibul Hasan played in three ICC Trophy tournaments. In 1979, he scored 52 runs in 4 matches with a highest of 34 against Canada. He did better in 1982, scoring 167 runs at an average of 27.83. His highest, 42, came against West Africa. Finally, in 1986, he scored 121 runs at an average of 24.19. His unbeaten 47 helped Bangladesh beat Argentina. He retired from international cricket after the 1986 ICC Trophy.[6]

Year Matches Runs Average Highest Score 100 / 50
1979 4 52 13.00 34 0/0
1982 7 167 27.83 42 0/0
1986 6 121 24.20 47* 0/0
Overall 17 340 22.67 47* 0/0
Raqibul Hasan: Significant Performances in International cricket
Date Opposition Venue Performance
Dec. 1976 MCC Rajshahi 73
Jan 1977 MCC Jessore 74
Feb. 1978 Decan Blues(India) Dhaka 64
Jan 1981 MCC Chittagong 78*
Jan 1981 MCC Dhaka 51 & 51
Dec. 1983 Chandan Nagar West Bengal(India) 77
Feb. 1984 Kenya Nairobi 64
March 1986 Rawalpindi Rawalpindi 49
June 1986 Argentina (ICC Trophy) England 47*

Raqibul as captain

He had two spells as captain of Bangladesh; first during 1977–79 and second during the 1983–84 season. He had a difficult time during the Sri Lanka series in January 1978. The Sri Lankan team was far superior, winning all the three-day unofficial Test matches. Raqibul Hasan failed to convert quite a few starts into any score of substance. He (and his team) did better, against the Indians (Deccan Blues) (led by former Indian captain Ajit Wadekar) in February 1978. His defiant 64 helped the local side reach 320/9, despite the efforts of Indian leg spinner M. V. Narasimha Rao, who took 6 for 120. This was the first time Bangladesh crossed the 300 mark in an international match. However, Raqibul failed with the bat the following season, against a relatively weak MCC squad. It was apparent that the captaincy was becoming a burden for him. So, the selectors chose wicketkeeper-batsman Shafiq-ul-Haq Hira as captain for the 1st ICC Trophy in England in 1979.

Raqibul's second spell as captain came during the busy 1983–84 season. He led Bangladesh to victory in the 1984 South-East Asia Cup in Dhaka in January. In 1985, Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu was named as the new captain.[7]

Domestic cricket

Raqibul played his League cricket in Dhaka for Victoria Sporting Club and Mohammedan Sporting Club.

References

  1. : Rafiqul Ameer, "Looking Back: Bangladesh Cricket in the 80's". Retrieved on 2008-07-08.
  2. BSS. "Nine individuals, one institution get Independence Award-2023". Prothomalo. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  3. Hasan Babli, "Antorjartik Crickete Bangladesh". Khelar Bhuban Prakashani, November 1994.
  4. Cricinfo Scorecard: Bangladesh v Pakistan (31 March 1986). (Retrieved on 2007-12-25).
  5. Cricinfo Scorecard :Bangladesh v Sri-Lanka. (2 April 1986) (Retrieved on 2007-12-25)
  6. "BanglaCricket". Archived from the original on 2 April 2008. Retrieved 22 July 2009. Banglacricket: Bangladesh in ICC Trophy (retrieved on 2008-07-09)
  7. Hasan Babli. "Antorjartik Crickete Bangladesh". Khelar Bhuban Prakashani, November 1994.
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