Bangladesh pace bowler Nahid Rana insisted that his improved fitness is helping him deliver in scorching conditions.
The 23-year-old fast bowler returned figures of 5 for 32 to set up a crushing six-wicket victory against New Zealand at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Monday, helping level the series.
Rana's relentless burst of pace under a blazing sun, where temperatures hovered between 34 and 36 degrees Celsius but felt significantly higher, proved too hot to handle for the visitors. The right-arm pacer consistently clocked over 140 kmph throughout his spell, barring a single slower delivery to Nick Kelly at 112 kmph, as he refused to ease off despite the heat.
"First of all, Alhamdulillah, Allah has kept me fit. Secondly, regarding fitness, I work on it outside practice and also during practice with the fitness trainer. I talk to them about how to develop or improve my fitness further so that during matches I feel that I'm bowling and never getting tired. For these things, whatever needs to be done in off time - gym, running, or maintaining myself - I try to do them well," Rana said after the game.
"I always try to perform in a way that impacts the team. It could be a spell, it could be an over - it can happen anytime. I always try - even if I can bowl just one good over to help my team win, and if that over creates impact for the team, I am happy. For me, more than wickets, what matters is whether I can help my team win," he said.
Rana was measured when asked about his increasingly lethal yorker, now an added weapon to complement his natural short-of-a-length threat.
"Over time, I am trying to improve my skills. Of course, whether it's Shaun or the coaches in Bangladesh, I work with them. I try to execute (yorkers) in practice, and if I see its 100 percent, then I try to deliver it in matches," he said.
Amid growing debate around managing his workload to preserve him for bigger occasions, Rana appeared unfazed.
"Injuries don't come with a warning. Regarding maintenance, as you said, the physios at BCB and the workload management team definitely monitor how many matches we play," he said.
