MUSHI 2.0 — PLAYER + MENTOR

When Mushfiqur Rahim talks, you listen.
In the Bangladesh dressing room, this is one of the unwritten rules. And there is a strong reason for that.
For the last few years, veteran Mushfiq, who recently turned 39, has been enjoying an evolving role with the Bangladesh national team. Apart from being one of the best batters in the side, Mushfiq has been adding enormous value as a mentor, guide, and sometimes a coach too.
He is now the big brother of the family who shows everyone the right way — the Mushfiq way. And everyone in Bangladesh cricket knows that the Mushfiq way is the way to longevity at the highest level. He holds the second-longest Test cricket career span among Asian players, trailing only Sachin Tendulkar. Following his appearance in the first Test against Pakistan, Mushfiq's career extended to 20 years and 348 days, officially surpassing Pakistan's Imran Khan.
Despite hitting his late thirties, Mushfiq has not let the runs dry up. He has been averaging 43.59 in Test cricket over the last five years — numbers that would be the envy of batters half his age.
But he is now adding value to the team in ways that numbers cannot reflect.
Mushfiq was the mastermind behind the incredible 2-0 series win against Pakistan in 2024, when Bangladesh players endured a month-long intense training camp in Chattogram. The senior batter designed that camp himself, making sure players stayed in single rooms — just like they would during actual Test matches — to replicate the conditions and mental demands of the format.
Mushfiq has also started the conversation around remodelling Bangladesh's first-class system to push for higher quality competitive cricket. He requested the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to switch from Dukes balls to Kookaburra from the next domestic season, to promote a more Test-like environment in the first-class system — given that Bangladesh use the Kookaburra in the vast majority of their Test matches.
His role is expanding with time and becoming more formalised. Bangladesh are set to travel to Australia for two Test matches in August — their first tour there since 2003. The Daily Sun has learned that BCB ad-hoc committee head Tamim Iqbal has asked Mushfiq to fill the role of a "go-between" with the players and coaching staff, as Bangladesh will be without senior assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin, who will be joining the BCB high performance team.
On his evolving role, Mushfiq was characteristically thoughtful when speaking ahead of the Sylhet Test on Friday.
"I share my experience," he said. "I have played for so many years and I have a little idea of what a situation like this can be like or what the opponent can do. So I just try to share that. And what I think is most important is that it is not just a normal thing in Test cricket — we have known everyone for almost 25 to 30 years and we have played together on some platform, be it international, domestic, or first class."
Mushfiq also shared his broader philosophy on work ethic and professional discipline — a philosophy that has underpinned his remarkable longevity.
"I think that sports is something that you cannot compromise with, as it is your livelihood. It is not something where one day you feel good and work from 6am to 10pm and the next day you feel bad and sleep all day. Just like you do your own journalism — you also have your own ethics, your own rules and regulations. Professional athletes also have their own rules and regulations and discipline. As long as they can maintain that, obviously, from where you will not get any return if you do not put in the work — there is no bigger fool than him. I think they are slowly understanding these things better now," he explained.
On the prospect of touring Australia in June, Mushfiq was candid and emotional. "I don't know whether I will survive tomorrow or not, InshaAllah. If I go, then I definitely said that I have never had the opportunity in my career — I have not played there in any bilateral series or even a Test. If I do, InshaAllah, if Allah allows me, I will definitely be more than happy to serve for my country," he said.
When asked whether this is the best Bangladesh Test team ever, Mushfiq gave a measured but confident verdict. "Many great individual players have played in our Test team before. But overall, in terms of consistency, the Test team that is playing now is obviously more consistent than ever," he elucidated.
On the state of Bangladesh's first-class structure, Mushfiq was honest about how much work remains. "Our first-class structure has not improved much yet. I think there is a lot more work to be done. In normal first-class cricket, if you put 6mm grass on your sporting wicket — cricket is never played with 6mm grass anywhere in the world as far as I know. You have to make a system where, if there are five venues, there are five types of wickets across each of the five. So that when an under-19 player plays, he can technically develop his game in a way that prepares him for every surface — a spinning wicket that turns on day two, or a pace-friendly surface where the ball moves differently. If we can plan and relate like that, then definitely our first-class cricket will grow," he said.