Mushfiqur Rahim zooms ahead of wicket-keeping greats Dhoni, Sangakkara and Gilchrist

Mushfiqur Rahim achieved a feat that no other wicket-keeper batsman had managed till date in the history of Test cricket. Rahim slammed an unbeaten 219 against Zimbabwe and thus became the first wicket-keeper batsman in Test history to have two double centuries to his name.

Bangladeshi cricket witnessed an upsurge in its fortune towards the second half of the first century of the 2000s and that was triggered by a new breed of young players, who were blessed with the wherewithal to lock horns with the best in the world.

Bangladesh cricketer Mushfiqur Rahim celebrates his fifty runs during the first day of the second Test cricket match between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka on November 11, 2018. (Photo by MUNIR UZ ZAMAN / AFP)(AFP)

Wicket-keeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim was one of those precocious young talents and what a player he has gone on to become for the Bangla Tigers.

On Monday, the diminutive batsman achieved a feat that no other wicket-keeper batsman had managed till date in the history of Test cricket. Rahim slammed an unbeaten 219 against Zimbabwe and thus became the first wicket-keeper batsman in Test history to have two double centuries to his name.

This is a great achievement for the Bangladeshi as several legends like MS Dhoni, Kumar Sangakkara and Adam Gilchrist have not managed this feat while donning the wicket-keeping gloves for their respective teams.

While Sangakkara has 11 Test double centuries to his name, one short of Don Bradman’s record of 12, only one of those came when he was keeping wickets for his team.

Zimbabwe’s legendary wicket-keeper batsman Andy Flower came closest to having two double hundreds to his name as he remained unbeaten on 199 against South Africa. He had earlier scored a double century against India.

Mushfiqur, who has captained Bangladesh earlier, was elated at becoming the first to reach the milestone.

“I have said repeatedly keeping helps me a lot,” the 31-year-old told reporters.

“Though it doesn’t mean that I will score centuries or double centuries in every match where I keep but it’s my process, and I am a big believer in process and preparation.

“It sometimes happens that there is a bit of a problem managing the workload of the two roles, but I think it is a challenge and the one which I always enjoy.”

Andy Flower’s unbeaten knock of 232 against India remains the highest Test score by a wicket-keeper batsman.