Family ties

Even as Bangladesh were surrendering at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Akram Khan, at 38 years and 206 days, was playing his last organised cricket match. Playing for DOHS against Sonargaon in the Dhaka Premier Division League, he led for the last time a team that could scarcely have got more interesting. There were veterans in Steve Tikolo and Khaled Mahmud. They had ultra youngsters in Tamim Iqbal and Dollar Mahmud – his name will catch your eye before his pace does, which according to locals will do too.

Akram made only three in his last game, but Tamim, his nephew, made 72 in true aggressive style, which has made him one of Bangladesh's favourite players. A past hero, who led Bangladesh to their first ODI win and led the team in the ignominious years, did not get to bat with the fearless youngster, the future of Bangladesh cricket, though.

Akram had earlier said he was in tears seeing the way Tamim batted against India in the World Cup. He couldn't have imagined batsmen of his generation play with such bravado and disrespect to reputations. "Under me, we didn't get to play much cricket," he says, "It mainly used to be Asia Cup every two years against opponents like India and Pakistan.

"We were very much afraid of them," he said as Tamim walked out to a thunderous roar at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, during the second one-dayer. "We didn't know how to play cricket, our standard was low and no good coaches would come to Bangladesh."

The bigger opponents did not respect them. Akram remembers his first match against India, in Chandigarh in December 1990. "Navjot Sidhu mocked us then, he said, 'Bring on your slow bowling, I will hit sixes.'" Sidhu did end up hitting three sixes in his unbeaten 104. As we remembered that moment, Tamim was run out, and India's mad celebrations at getting the prized wicket showed that times had changed.

"These boys are strong, they are mentally and physically much stronger, and have a good body language" Akram said. They have also played a lot of cricket against Zimbabwe and Kenya, more their standard than India or Pakistan. That, according to Akram, has helped them a lot in improving gradually.

After quitting cricket, Akram will take charge of the very same boys, in the capacity of a selector. Not a bad time for Tamim to stake his Test claim – with the future selector waiting with his pads on.