Bangla Dollar wary of crashing too soon

First things first. When the name Dollar was given, it had no mint-factory aspirations - neither American nor Bangladeshi...

First things first. When the name Dollar was given, it had no mint-factory aspirations – neither American nor Bangladeshi, where incidentally the exchange was 69.10 Taka on budget day. Two decades ago, it was a purely sporting whim that made his father decide to name Bangladesh’s latest debutant paceman Dollar Mahmud.

A volleyball referee in Narail, a quiet town in south-west Bangladesh, he was impressed by a spiker from adjoining city of Khulna by that name, and christened his son after him.

The youngster was expected to study, not play cricket, but as he shot

up in height and gained in speed, this non-descript area had unearthed its second medium-pacer after the original Narail Express, Mashrafe Mortaza.

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They talk of a 2 on 2 — 100 per cent record — for the town along the banks of the Chitra river, where Mortaza would swim and build his shoulder muscles.

“School cricket was always about tape-ball cricket,” says the 19-year-old Dollar with a disarming guffaw.

Narail was known more for its renowned Bangladeshi painter Sheikh Mohammed Sultan, who sketched the buildings his mason-father worked on before scaling artistic heights. Humble beginnings have been scripted into success stories here.

Sultan’s bohemian ways took him to distant places, traversing the subcontinent. Now, cricket has ensured that Dollar starts visiting the major cricketing bastions of the world.

Going places

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He has played two junior World Cups, and has gone to West Indies with one of Bangladesh’s development sides. He bowls at 130 kph, aiming at a long stay with the young squad rather than making waves on the speed-gun.

“My debut was alright, not great,” he says of his first game on Sunday where he claimed the wicket of Kamran Akmal, but went for well above 6-an-over. “I need to work hard to be a part of the team for the next many years,” he repeats.

With the ability to move the ball both ways, the former Academy boy can be deceptive with the one that occasionally skids, but is demanding the most attention from his coach Jamie Siddons.

“He’s a raw talent, and has lots to offer. Reasonably hard working, he can aim at the higher 130s, but we need to work on his batting because this side needs all-rounders,” says Siddons.

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A hard-hitter for his local Mohemeddans side in the no-suggestions league, his freeing of arms is at present nothing more than a wannabe pinch-hitter’s indulgence.

The tall colt has to his name the first hat-trick in the national cricket league’s first-class competition. Now, he is hoping for bigger net-hauls when he plays bigger sides like India.

“Those are the big games I need to play, and I have to prove a lot of things. But I enjoy bowling with Mashrafe,” says the youngster — called Dolly by his team mates.

Like the painter legend from his small town, he’s eager for the final impression. The canvas needs to dry and the ball needs to get old to know this Dollar’s real worth.