Mushfiqur Rahim indirectly targets Babar Azam after missing out on a double century vs Pakistan

Veteran Bangladesh batter Mushfiqur Rahim expressed his satisfaction with his performance during the ongoing first Test against Pakistan.

Mushfiqur Rahim hoped that his team would secure victory during the fifth day's play of the series opener between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi.

The Shan Masood-led team declared their first innings at 448/6. Mohammad Rizwan was the top scorer with an unbeaten 171 runs, and Saud Shakeel scored 141 runs.

The pair added a 240-run stand for the fifth wicket. For Bangladesh, Shoriful Islam and Hasan Mahmud each took two wickets.

In response, Bangladesh posted a mammoth total of 565 runs in 167.3 overs. The visiting team took a formidable lead of 117 runs after their first innings.

Mushfiqur Rahim scored 191 runs off 341 balls, including 22 boundaries and one six, before being dismissed by Mohammad Ali on Day 4.

Hopefully We Will Be On The Winning Side - Mushfiqur Rahim

Speaking ahead of the fifth day's play, Mushfiqur Rahim expressed optimism about securing a win in the ongoing match. He highlighted that personal milestones are not a priority, as his main goal is to contribute to the team's success.

"Great feeling, hopefully we will be on the winning side after the final day's play. Milestone is a number for me, as long as I'm scoring for my team, that's what I'm looking for. I spent a lot of time and put important runs with my colleagues. Nothing much, just try to be honest with myself and compete with me," Rahim said.

I Did A Lot Of Fitness Work - Mushfiqur Rahim

Mushfiqur Rahim emphasized that he needs to maintain good dietary habits to prolong his international career. The former skipper said that he utilized a two-and-a-half-month window for improving his fitness and thanked the BCB and management for their support in his preparation.

"If you want to sustain in international cricket and play a long time for your country, you have to be at your best. Off the field, you have to look at your food habits," he further added.

"I got two and a half months' window, where I did a lot of fitness work, lots of thanks to BCB and the managament. Although the wicket is still very good, if we take 3-4 early wickets in the morning session, you never know," Rahim concluded.

Rahim came to bat when Bangladesh was at 147/3. He added a 114-run stand with Litton Das for the sixth wicket and then formed a 196-run partnership with Mehidy Hasan Miraz for the seventh wicket. The veteran batter set a record for the highest score by a Bangladeshi batter in Pakistan in Test cricket.

Apart from Rahim, Shadman Islam, Litton Das, and Mominul Haque registered scores of 93, 56, and 50, respectively. For Pakistan, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shahzad, and Mohammad Ali each took two wickets. At the time of writing, Pakistan was at 66/3 after 26 overs, trailing by 51 runs.

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