Dimunitive in stature, tall on the field: Mushfiqur Rahim's Test journey

Mushfiqur Rahim's dreams are about to come true!

When the diminutive right-handed wicket-keeper batter walks out to play the second Test against Ireland at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, history will be made.

Rahim will become only the ninth batter in cricketing history to be the first player to play 100 Tests for their respective countries. He will join an elite club that comprises Colin Cowdrey (England), Sunil Gavaskar (India), Clive Lloyd (West Indies), Allan Border (Australia), Javed Miandad (Pakistan), Gary Kirsten (South Africa), Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka) and Stephen Fleming (New Zealand).

For any cricketer, being the first to play 100 Tests for their country is a huge achievement, and the journey is a testament to sheer determination and dedication for Rahim, who has truly understood the value of the format.

Former Bangladesh skipper Tamim Iqbal, one of Rahim's close friends since childhood, feels no one deserves to reach this historical landmark more than the right-handed batter, known as Mr Dependable.

"I feel that if anyone among us really deserved to play 100 Test matches, then he deserved it," Tamim told Cricbuzz. "For a Bangladeshi cricketer, playing 100 Test matches is very challenging. There was a time in Bangladesh when in two years you would have just one or two Test matches and he belonged to that era. To keep motivated, to keep fit, to keep performing and to achieve what he is going to achieve is remarkable."

"And I think, if you ask the cricketing family, he deserves it the most because of the way he has maintained his body, the way he trains. I think it's a great achievement," he added.

"We should not see this as someone's individual achievement. It's a humongous moment for Bangladesh cricket. To be the first man and to come from an era where in one and a half years you play one or two Tests, and from there play 100 Test matches – I think the whole country, the entire cricketing fraternity, fans, cricket board, players-everybody should celebrate this moment."

Habibul Bashar, former Bangladesh skipper under whose captaincy Rahim debuted as a young batter at Lords, said: "Cricket is everything for Mushfiqur. I was his captain and then selector and I have been with him for a long time in his career. He's one of those players who would always be selected in the playing XI without discussion."

Tamim feels that Rahim transformed his batting from time to time to cope with challenges, sticking to his same mantra irrespective of results.

Rahim has set a benchmark that few can match in a cricketing culture where longevity is rare, becoming a symbol of hard work and commitment. His relentless practice sessions often raised eyebrows when his form dipped, with critics suggesting he was losing energy in the nets.

After the first Test against Ireland, Rahim asked BCB cricket operation officials to prepare the wicket in Mirpur for him to train alone during the scheduled break – this relentless pursuit of excellence defines both his career and character.

"In international cricket, the most important thing is to understand your own game," said Iqbal. "How you train and prepare for games is probably the most important thing to be successful. Mushfiq is a great example of being an okay batsman to being a very good batsman. When he started his career, for a number of years he was an okay batsman but he understood what he needed to do within his capacity."

"Throughout this process, he has his own mantra of preparation. Not necessarily that it works for somebody else, but it works for him. The best thing I saw in him is that when he was scoring runs, everything was fine. But when he wasn't scoring runs, following the same thing – there were a lot of questions raised. Credit to him – he never listened to any noise. He kept doing it and always believed in his mantra."

Bashar noted that every individual has different preparation methods: "Someone has to do four rounds while running and it may be three for some – everyone has a different body and mindset. But there is no alternative to hard work. I won't criticise him for running that extra mile."

In Bangladesh cricketing circles, Rahim is known as an emotional cricketer. There are stories of him getting immensely upset when he fails to contribute with the bat, sometimes even skipping lunch out of agony. He has distanced himself from media at times, including deciding not to attend the pre-series press conference ahead of his 100th Test despite team management requests.

Tamim believes Rahim is sometimes misunderstood: "I think that's true to some extent but he is also misunderstood. Everybody in this world, as a human, you will have a good side and a bad side. But you also need to know how to deal with certain individuals. I never had issues with him – he is my friend, I had fights, I had friendship, I have beautiful moments with him. That's called friendship. But I also know how to deal with him."

Tamim added that watching Rahim in the dressing room is an experience: "Very neat and clean and I mean this is an experience to watch. It's an experience to watch how a person can be so disciplined, organised. So it's an experience to watch and I hope if someone ever gets that fortune, they will see how he conducts himself."

Mushfiqur has always been an organised man throughout his career without making unnecessary noise. His childhood mentor Nazmul Abedin feels this is why he reached this landmark: "There were couple of cricketers of his generation who could also reach that landmark of playing 100 Tests but that did not happen. While others were focused on many things, he was only focused on cricket."

For the next generation of Bangladesh cricketers, Rahim will be looked upon as someone who fought against all odds and won the battle on his own terms through all the ups and downs.