Mominul, sidekick to the Don

The position immediately below Don Bradman's 99.94 on Test cricket's batting average charts is a temporary seat for successful beginners. If batsman starts off with a century or a double, or goes on to hit a few in his first few Test matches, he is just a step down from Bradman, people notice. But, eventually, that average inevitably begins to come down. The latest batsman to occupy that spot is Bangladesh's Mominul Haque, with an average of 63.05 after his unbeaten 131 against Zimbabwe in Chittagong.

Of course, Mominul has had a 50-plus average since his fourth Test, but he is only 23 innings into his career and, like all those others before him, being second only to Bradman is not likely to last too long for him either. Still, his position looks awesome and sounds amazing to any Bangladesh fan.

And that average is a fair reflection of his unique temperament among his peers. Mominul's strokeplay, too, and the confidence with which he lays bat on ball, is also starting to standout. The two drives between extra cover and mid-off early in his innings today, his body position while playing drives off the backfoot through mid-on, and the sweeps, pulls, tickles and cuts ... it all made for great viewing pleasure.

His journey in Test cricket has not been as effortless. Mominul had got to a half-century six times this year before today, and only one of those he converted into a hundred - on all five other occasions, he was out before getting into the 60s. Mominul had to find out a way to get out of the fifties.

It was something as simple as having fewer negative thoughts that worked for him, he said after the day's play in Chittagong. And despite a brisk start - he got to 50 off 69 balls - he did not lose concentration, even willing to battle it out for 22 balls after getting into the nineties before he hit the four that got him to his fourth century.

"It really feels great to be able to do something for the team," Mominul said. "I try in every game to make some contribution. I didn't want to lose concentration. I wanted to play ball-by-ball, session-by-session. I was less negative today. I had fewer negative thoughts, which possibly helped me get the runs. The wicket was good. I tried to attack, dominate their bowlers.

"I didn't make any technical changes in my batting. It was mostly tactical. I think about my batting when I am on my own. I try to overcome the areas which are not helping me, which were holding me back. It is not a lot of things that I think about. It is better to stay normal and take on less pressure. But now that it has happened, I am saying this. If I hadn't scored a century, I wouldn't be able to say it."

To put his 131 into perspective in terms of match situation, compared to his previous three hundreds, Mominul was cruising in Chittagong rather than navigating through choppy waters. His 181 and unbeaten 126 against New Zealand last year came when replying to a large score and trying to save a Test match respectively. Against Sri Lanka, when he scored his third century, an unbeaten 100, it came on the final day with the opposition pushing for a win.

This time, he was allowed to bat with the freedom provided by a 165-run cushion and against a bowling attack that was running on empty. It was his third century in three Tests in Chittagong, and he duly pointed out that it would be unwise to expect him to score big every time he turns up at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.

"I have scored three of my four centuries at this ground, but it doesn't mean I have to score a hundred here every time," Mominul said. "It is a matter of luck. If it happens, it happens. I don't think much about it. There was no extra pressure on me.

"But I worked out why I was getting out in the fifties. I tried to do something more to go past it. And when success comes to a player, the responsibility rises. Now there is expectation on me, and it is steadily rising."

That attitude of Mominul's is quite refreshing for those who have got used to Bangladesh cricketers showing early promise, followed by a display of bravado, only to experience the inevitable come-down. Mominul is experiencing the first part of that process, but his personality hasn't allowed him to move on to the second, so far. He will not be Bradman's sidekick for too long, but the fact that he has not got carried away by his early success can only be good for Bangladesh.