NCL: Mithun's 119 and Sohan's Unbeaten 104 Showcase Experience as Khulna Bat Deep

The fifth round of Bangladesh's National Cricket League (NCL) belonged to the experienced hands. Mohammad Mithun struck 119 off 169 balls to complete his 17th first-class century, while wicketkeeper-batter Nurul Hasan Sohan made an unbeaten 104 off 180 deliveries for his 13th first-class hundred. Both men have played international cricket. For both, the innings are not merely statistical additions but a restatement of relevance in a domestic circuit that feeds the national side.

The NCL is contested across four-day matches, and its fifth round underlined that the competition is not only a laboratory for young players. It is also the stage for internationals who are on the outside of the national set-up or whose places are under scrutiny. Mithun and Sohan both fall in that category. Their centuries arriving in the same innings also indicates that Khulna built a substantial platform and kept the opposition bowlers waiting for long spells.

Mithun's innings: control over tempo

Mithun's century reflected his familiar profile - 119 from 169 balls at a strike rate of roughly 70.4. In first-class cricket that is neither reckless nor laboured. It is exactly what is expected of an experienced middle-order batter in a four-day game: read the conditions first, accumulate, then accelerate once the pitch tires.

The hundred is his 17th in first-class cricket, a number that speaks for itself. Bangladesh's domestic first-class calendar has historically been compact, and reaching 17 hundreds requires consistency across several seasons. Mithun has shown that consistency even though his place in the national side was never permanent. It is the familiar contradiction of Bangladeshi domestic cricket - the gap between domestic numbers and international opportunity.

His career is the clearest illustration of that gap. He has played Tests and ODIs and was part of the 2026 World Cup squad, but never firmly held a middle-order berth over a long period. Questions were raised less about his technique and more about his consistency. Every time he returns to domestic cricket, the same question follows him: is this innings a claim on the next opportunity? The 119 is a favourable answer, but domestic runs translating into international selection has never been a straight equation in Bangladesh.

Sohan's 104 not out: the dual burden of a keeper-batter

Sohan's unbeaten 104 was slower - 180 balls at roughly 57.8. The contrast matters. Two batters scoring at different rates in the same partnership is the ideal situation for a team: runs keep coming at one end, the pitch keeps being occupied at the other. It disrupts the opposition captain's bowling plans.

This is his 13th first-class hundred. Sohan belongs to the group of Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batters expected to add run-rate in the lower middle order. But 180 balls unbeaten suggests a different role here - the anchor, the batter who holds the innings together in difficult conditions. Keeping wicket and then batting is demanding both physically and mentally, and a long innings requires a different kind of concentration.

Bangladesh's Test wicketkeeping slot has always been debated. One option is a keeper who is strongest behind the stumps; the other is one who adds batting depth. Sohan is in the second category, and his 13th hundred strengthens the argument that he should get a sustained run in the longer format. Selectors have argued, however, that domestic hundreds and Test-quality bowling are very different propositions. That is where the limits of NCL numbers become visible.

Supporting hands and the shape of the innings

Beyond the two centurions, Khulna had a third batter who occupied the crease for a long period. Ashraful Hasan Rihad made 51 off 133 balls at roughly 38.3. It is a slow innings, but in four-day cricket such an innings has value. It tires the bowlers, frees the batter at the other end, and protects the team when the second new ball arrives.

Three batters playing long innings indicates a surface that was good for batting but not entirely flat. A completely dead pitch would have produced even worse bowling figures; a genuinely seamer-friendly surface would not have allowed such long partnerships. The way Khulna's top order spent time suggests the team's plan was to build a total first and attack later.

Read together, Mithun's 70.4 and Rihad's 38.3 paint a clear picture: one end maintained momentum, the other prioritised occupation. It is the traditional approach in domestic first-class cricket, and it places steadily mounting pressure on the fielding side.

Bowling: Meshu leads with four

Amid Khulna's long innings, Yeasin Arafat Meshu was Mymensingh's most successful bowler with four wickets. Four wickets in a four-day game is not remarkable in itself, but taking them when the opposition has already posted two hundreds and the run rate is out of control demands a different skill. Meshu broke through when his team most needed a breakthrough.

Md Ashraful Hasan took three wickets and Sanjit Mojumder two. Together, Mymensingh's bowlers shared nine wickets, which suggests the side did not rely on one bowler. In domestic cricket that is a meaningful signal, because all too often one bowler carries an entire innings while the rest simply send down overs. Here three bowlers contributed, indicating that Mymensingh used the attack as a unit.

Mymensingh Division is a relatively new entrant to the NCL, and for such teams the biggest challenge is a lack of experience. Against international-standard batters like Mithun and Sohan, planning becomes difficult. Sharing nine wickets among three bowlers and preventing the innings from running away, despite the centuries, is a positive.

Spin dominates elsewhere

In other matches of the round, left-arm spinner Hasan Murad returned figures of 4 for 74. Bangladesh's domestic circuit has a strong spin tradition, and spinners often shape the course of a match in the first innings itself. Four wickets for 74 runs means he combined control with penetration - the ideal combination for any spinner.

Hasan Murad is a left-arm spinner who has been in and around Bangladesh's Test set-up, and his main weapons are changes of pace and the ability to turn the ball both ways. Performances like this keep him on the selectors' radar. Competition in Bangladesh's Test spin department has been intense, and such returns keep it alive.

For Rangpur Division, pacer Mehedi Hasan took three wickets. Fast-bowling depth in Bangladesh's domestic game is a perennial talking point, and three wickets is a sign that Rangpur's pace unit is functioning. Drawing broad conclusions from three wickets would be premature, however, because the real test for a seamer in a four-day game comes in the second innings, when the pitch has slowed and batters are set.

Signals from the younger batters

The round also offered glimpses of younger batting. S M Meherob Hasan made an unbeaten 82 off 132 balls at roughly 62.1. The innings was notable for combining aggression with restraint. Being unbeaten suggests an attempt to bat through, an important quality in a young player. In Bangladeshi domestic cricket, young batters often reach 40 or 50 and get out, raising questions about their ability to convert. Batting unbeaten to 82 is a partial answer.

Mahmudul Hasan Joy finished unbeaten on 35. He has opened in Tests for Bangladesh and is identified as a batter who can survive the new ball; he marked his Test debut with a half-century. Being 35 not out indicates the innings could extend, but no firm conclusion should be drawn from that figure yet.

The NCL structure and Mymensingh's place

The National Cricket League is Bangladesh's flagship first-class competition, organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board, with the country's divisional teams taking part. Khulna, Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Sylhet and Barishal are joined by Mymensingh Division. Mymensingh's participation signals the competition's geographic expansion, but it carries a challenge: new teams lack depth of experience and must face divisions packed with international players.

The NCL's importance goes beyond the title. It is the pipeline for the national team, and performances here feed directly into selection debates. Because it is a four-day competition aligned with Test cricket, its numbers carry different weight from those in limited-overs tournaments. But weight does not mean numbers alone decide selection - team management still values technique, temperament, shot selection and the ability to play to conditions.

That is why Mithun's 17th hundred and Sohan's 13th attract the most discussion, while the question of whether they translate into selection remains open. Bangladesh's Test middle order and wicketkeeping slot have seen several experiments in recent years, and after each one selectors have had to explain how domestic performance is being weighed.

Selection implications

On numbers alone, Mithun's 119 is the strongest claim for a middle-order place. His strike rate stayed above 70, meaning he both gave the innings momentum and spent time. Bangladesh's Test side has lacked a middle-order batter who can score without dragging the run rate down. Mithun fits that profile, though his Test record has been questioned for consistency.

Sohan's case is different. As a wicketkeeper-batter, he needs his batting to be an additional argument for a Test place. Being 104 not out sends that message. Selectors will also weigh his keeping standards and whether team balance requires a specialist keeper or an extra batter. It is a choice repeated every series and contested every time.

The message for younger players is simple: score heavily in domestic cricket, but heavy scoring alone is not enough. The tempo, patience and adaptability expected in Tests must be visible here too. Meherob's 82 not out and Joy's 35 not out are steps in that direction, but this is one round of data, not a measure of development.

Reading the pitch and the innings

Two centuries and a half-century in one innings indicates a surface good for batting. The flip side of a flat pitch is that bowlers do not get reward quickly. In such conditions the real Test of a side is how long batters sustain patience and how long bowlers keep changing their lines. Mymensingh's three bowlers sharing nine wickets shows the team used its options sensibly.

A major problem in domestic first-class cricket is the inconsistency of pitches. Some grounds offer bounce and pace; others favour spin. That inconsistency means player numbers are not directly comparable. A batter averaging 50 in one season and another averaging 40 across varied surfaces can look different on paper, but context is needed to judge real quality. That context is what is most often missing from the selection debate.

What to watch next

After the fifth round there is room for movement in the NCL table, because teams like Khulna have the capacity to post large totals. The centuries from Mithun and Sohan show that experience has not lost its value. Hasan Murad's 4 for 74 and Meshu's four wickets show that the bowling is also making its case.

In the next round, the focus will be on whether Mithun and Sohan sustain this form, whether Mymensingh's attack emerges as a match-winning unit, and whether the younger batters convert their unbeaten scores into major innings. The real value of domestic cricket lies in those answers, because that is where the names for the next Test series are decided.