Taijul Islam is that friend you can trust when no one else turns up. He will sit outside the doctor's room for you; the one who will wait for you in the rain, or bowl your team to a great position when you are in trouble. Taijul has been that sort of friend of Bangladesh cricket. He has quietly taken 224 Test wickets, one among three to have ever done so for the country. Yet, he doesn't have the celebrity status that most cricketers enjoy in Bangladesh.
When Zimbabwe were going comfortably on a first day pitch that offered little to the bowlers, Taijul stepped up with another five-wicket haul. He partnered with offspinner Nayeem Hasan to tie up the visitors for the first 16 overs in the third session, before bagging the wickets. From 200 for 4, Zimbabwe collapsed to 227 for 9 at stumps. It put Bangladesh in the driving seat.
Taijul showed them how to grit it out in tough situations. There was some help for the spinners in the latter part of the day but Bangladesh took a bit of time to get themselves back in contention. Nick Welch retiring hurt shortly after tea was a lucky break. But thereafter, the slowdown of Zimbabwe was all down to Taijul and Nayeem.
Nayeem made circumstances easier for the Bangladesh bowlers when he removed captain Craig Ervine and Sean Williams in successive overs. Ervine struggled against offspinners operating from both ends before getting caught behind off Nayeem. Williams, the most accomplished of Zimbabwe's batters on the day, struggled with cramps before dinking one to debutant Tanzim Hasan Sakib at backward square-leg.
Having taken Ben Curran's wicket in his first over of the day, Taijul had to wait for his next. He removed Wessly Madhevere with a left-arm spinner's stock delivery, that the batter edged to the wicketkeeper. Taijul then took two more with the new ball in the next over, both left-handers. Wellington Masakadza was trapped lbw before Richard Ngarava missed a straight one from over the wicket and was bowled.
He ran out Vincent Masekesa shortly afterwards before clean bowling Welch, who had come back to bat after the fall of the eighth wicket. His decision to retire hurt at the start of the third session slowed Zimbabwe down and led to their collapse.
"[Welch retiring hurt] might have been the turning point," Taijul said. "But you also have to remember we dried up their runs. We bowled maidens on the trot round that time. These things make a difference. Obviously I am satisfied with my own performance particularly after Sylhet. When you have played 50 Tests and then bowl like I did in Sylhet, it is not great. The most important thing though was to help the team."
Nayeem and Mehidy Hasan Miraz tied down the left-handed pair of Ervine and Williams, which helped Taijul crack open the Zimbabwe lower order.
"Bowling in partnerships is important. Sometimes you will see wickets falling on a flat wicket, sometimes it doesn't on even good wickets," Taijul said. "When you create pressure, there's always chance of getting wickets. Of course, there's a difference between the Sylhet wicket and this one but at the time they were playing very well. Our plan was to remain disciplined and check the runs. We have seen that even after a 100-150 runs partnership, two or three wickets fall [quickly]."
Taijul also credited Nayeem for getting them two crucial wickets, especially after returning to the Test side after another considerable break. He last played against South Africa in October, and before that, just two Tests in 2023. This is Nayeem's 12th Test match (all at home) in more than six years since his debut. "It is difficult for a player to come into the team after such gaps," said Taijul. "Nayeem helped the team a lot today. He gave us two important breakthroughs."
Taijul is also steadily closing in on Shakib Al Hasan's Bangladesh record of 246 Test wickets. He is also three behind Shakib's 19 five-wicket hauls. Taijul, though, remains coy about reaching the mark, partly due to his nature of being understated throughout his career.
"Every player dreams of becoming the best of the best. A player won't get satisfaction until he reaches the top. I will try to reach that place, but Shakib bhai has done so many things for Bangladesh. I am sure he will continue to do well, and we can all help Bangladesh cricket."
This is Taijul to a tee: a humble friend of Bangladesh cricket. A steady bowler, a reliable lower-order batter and a dependable fielder. He doesn't demand attention. He only wheels away from one end, giving the bowlers at the other end the support they need. With Bangladesh without Shakib now, Taijul can be a great example for the rest of the team to understand what it takes to make it at the highest level.