Rishad Hossain

Rishad Hossain emerged as one of Bangladesh's best performers at the 2024 T20 World Cup - he finished equal (with Rashid Khan) on 14 wickets, in third place, which was even more impressive since he comes from a country with almost no history of fielding legspinners at the highest level.

Rishad's ascent from a novelty act to a match-winner might not have come as a surprise to the outside world - legspinners are an essential part of bowling attacks in most cricket teams - but Bangladesh had been cynical about legspin for long. They have been so discouraging of that style of bowling that there are hardly any in domestic cricket too. Rishad, however, has changed perceptions since making his international debut in 2023.

His rise had a lot to do with Chandika Hathurusinghe's return as Bangladesh's head coach. Hathurusinghe strongly believes that a legspinner can be a match-winner, so a month after his arrival, Rishad made his T20I debut against Ireland. He had only played 28 competitive matches in five years as domestic captains, coaches, and franchise team owners had been indifferent to his charms.

Rishad took just one wicket in five white-ball matches in New Zealand in December 2023, before showing improvement against Sri Lanka at home. He also showed glimpses of his big-hitting prowess. He struck seven sixes, the most by a Bangladeshi batter in a T20I, in the third game against Sri Lanka. Rishad's 18-ball unbeaten 48 in the third ODI had the fourth-highest strike rate by a Bangladeshi batter (minimum 25 runs) in the format.

He took 23 wickets in the Dhaka Premier League in 2024, including one five-wicket haul and two four-fors, for Shinepukur Cricket Club. Rishad then passed the big test at the T20 World Cup. His haul included three-fors against Sri Lanka, Netherlands and Afghanistan. And he showed great heart bowling in the death against India and South Africa, prompting many to speculate that T20 franchise contracts may be around the corner for him.