Bishop hails Nahid Rana’s superstar potential

Ian Bishop believes 24-year-old Nahid Rana has the pace and potential to take Bangladesh cricket to new heights, but has urged the team to prioritise the young fast bowler’s fitness before rushing him back into action.

The former West Indies pacer, who is commentating on the ongoing Bangladesh-West Indies Test series in Mirpur, has repeatedly spoken about Rana despite the speedster being absent from the squad because of an injury.

Rana missed Bangladesh’s recent Test series in Australia and is currently working towards a full recovery. He is expected to resume bowling in Australia, with his return timeline likely to become clearer once he starts building up his workload.

Bishop, who was disappointed to miss the opportunity to see Rana bowl on Australia’s bouncier pitches, believes the Bangladesh pacer can become one of the leading fast bowlers in world cricket.

“When you look around the world, you see a lot of young fast bowlers coming through. Nahid is as fast as, if not faster than, most of them,” Bishop said.

The renowned commentator believes Rana possesses a rare quality that every team wants in its pace attack.

“I believe he has the ability to take Bangladesh into a new chapter and to new heights, because you cannot simply buy pace. Every team in the world is looking for a bowler like Nahid Rana. So keep him fit,” he said.

Bishop’s message is clear: Bangladesh must protect Rana’s long-term future and ensure that his exceptional pace is not compromised by a premature return to international cricket.