mehrab hossain

Born September 22, 1978, Mehrab Hossain is a former Bangladeshi cricketer, who is remembered for the blow that stuck Raman Lamba’s head and resulted in his death. On his 37th birthday, Abhishek Kumar lists out seven interesting things about the former Bangladeshi batsman.

1.  Scored the first ever run for Bangladesh in Test cricket

Bangladesh played their first Test match in November 2000 and opener Mehrab scored the first runs for the country. However, all he managed was six runs. 

2.  Raman Lamba incident

Mehrab is remembered for the Raman Lamba incident. On February 20, 1998, Lamba was fielding close to the 19-year-old Mehrab in a league match in Dhaka. Lamba was fielding there without helmet and got struck in the temple from a pull shot from the Bangladeshi batsman. Later, after three days Lamba succumbed to his injuries and passed away. Mehrab was completely shaken by the incident.

3.  First Bangladeshi to score a century in ODIs

It was Mehrab’s fifth ODI appearance for Bangladesh. Playing against Zimbabwe, in a tri-series in 1999, Mehrab struck 101 from 116 balls and became the first centurion for Bangladesh in ODI cricket. Despite his efforts, Bangladesh lost by three wickets.

4.  Uncle’s milestone

It’s the fact that Mehrab was the first centurion from Bangladesh in the limited-overs format but eight years prior, his uncle Azhar Hossain became the first half-centurion in ODIs for Bangladesh. It came against New Zealand in Sharjah on April 28, 1990. 

5.  Promising start

In his first 7 ODIs, Mehrab scored a hundred and two fifties, and averaged as high as 39. Despite a good start, it’s a pity that all he played was 18 ODIs.

6.  Banned from domestic cricket

After playing his last ODI in 2003, Mehrab was banned from domestic cricket in the country for a year in 2004 after he failed to appear at Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) hearing. He last played a First-Class game in December 2014.

7.  Message to Sean Abbott

When Australian batsman Phil Hughes died after getting struck by a bouncer from Sean Abbott, Mehrab, recalling the Lamba incident, stood beside young Abbott. Mehrab’s simple message was, “Friend, I have gone through exactly what you are going through. What happened was an accident. Your family and friends, the cricket board, and cricketers from all over the world are in your support. We want you to come back to the game, but only when you are ready.”

(Abhishek Kumar is a cricket devotee currently staffing with Criclife.com. He can be followed at abhicricket.kumar and abhishekkr2593)