Taijul Islam

Taijul Islam (born 7 February 1992) is a Bangladeshi cricketer who has played at Test and One Day International (ODI) level for the Bangladesh national team.

A left-arm orthodox spinner, Taijul was selected for Bangladesh A after a strong 2013–14 domestic season, and went on to make his Test debut for Bangladesh on its 2014 tour of the West Indies. He took a five-wicket haul on debut, and, when Zimbabwe toured Bangladesh later in the year, took figures of 8/39, the best figures by any Bangladeshi at Test level. He made his ODI debut later in the series, and took a hat-trick, the first player to do so on debut.

Domestic career

Taijul has played at domestic level for Rajshahi Division and North Zone, in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) for Duronto Rajshahi, and in the Dhaka Premier Division for Prime Doleshwar SC. He made his first-class debut for Rajshahi Division during the 2010–11 season of the National Cricket League.

Taijul initially played in his hometown, Natore, before moving up to the Rajshahi Division league system. He toured Sri Lanka with the Bangladesh national under-19s during the 2009 season, and played three under-19 One Day Internationals and one under-19 Test. Taijul made his first-class debut for Rajshahi Division in April 2011, during the 2010–11 season of the National Cricket League (Bangladesh). He played three matches late in the season, taking 14 wickets (including three four-wicket hauls). This impressed Khaled Mashud, a former captain of Bangladesh and leading figure in the Rajshahi team, and reputedly guaranteed his place in the squad for several seasons.