Towhid Hridoy: Between Hype and Hesitation in Bangladesh’s White-Ball Puzzle

A young cricketer gets a hundred against a big team, and you’re a star. Towhid Hridoy had that feeling not too long ago – a brave century against India in the Champions Trophy that got plenty of people buzzing about him. What has he really delivered since then? A weird journey, well, not a weird journey like a roller coaster, more like a weird journey with a safety belt that doesn’t work, and you don’t know where you’re going. Hridoy has gone from rookie to legitimate starter, and now is in a holding pattern between expectation and performance. Plus, white-ball cricket is not doing him any favours.

From Free-Flowing to Foggy: A Style in Crisis

Let’s pause to reflect—Hridoy was a real stick to the simple stuff. After that famous ton against India, it was a game-changer. If he wasn’t just a hot young prospect before then, he became the guy. The guy people were looking to build around, anchor, finish, and hold the middle order together.

The numbers haven’t helped him since that high point. One ODI and two T20Is in two series have yielded underwhelming returns—7, 20, 45, 0, 17, 5, and 25. None of these were terrible innings in isolation, at least compared to some of the other scores in 2020, but in combination, they give the impression of a player going through their transition—and not a good one.

Mentally, also, Hridoy appears unbalanced. Once instinctive and self-assured, he now seems indecisive. Should he play aggressively from ball one? Should he bat deep? As any batter will tell you, when you’re thinking too much, you will always be one step behind.

The Pressure Cooker: Expectations vs Execution

Sohel Islam, who has a closer relationship to Hridoy through the Bangladesh Tigers program, explained it succinctly: “He would just go out there and bang. But now, I see he is torn between trying to hit and trying to extend his innings.” This internal struggle is affecting the foundation of Hridoy’s batting.

It’s not merely technical or tactical; there is a mental toll at play. While Hridoy is still in the early chapter of his international experience, it seems that expectations are burying him. And then, add a ban domestically in the Dhaka Premier League for dissent, which gives an extra layer of pressure, doubt, and distraction.

The problem is not just Hridoy—this is part of a more general trend in Bangladesh cricket. Young players get thrust into the limelight without a sufficient mental buffer. A great innings, and then they must be match-winners. But consistency does not develop in a day. It comes from failures and learning and being in the middle, all of which Hridoy urgently needs right now.

Role Recalibration: Can Hridoy Find Balance Before It’s Too Late?

Bangladesh’s white-ball schedule is about to become hot again. That allows Hridoy a wonderful opportunity to reset himself, not just technique-wise, but in his head.

Maybe the issue isn’t form, it’s role. If he is a player who plays with strokes, let him play that way. If the team wants him to bat on with an innings, then he has to have everything available (tools, training, time) to develop – but if you ask him to roll back and forth, you are just creating confusion and inconsistency.

On the contrary. Now is the time to reconstruct the surrounding story about him. Less pressure, more support. Less obsession with the numbers, more emphasis on the process. Because the moment Hridoy finds a proportionate balance between self-expression and execution, he could be just what Bangladesh needs from their middle order.

The real question is – can Bangladesh cricket afford to convert potential into pressure, or will they finally allow their fresh stars to figure things out at their speed and in their time?