Mahmudullah Riyad is a man whose name is etched in the eternal walls of Bangladesh’s history. This is a man that has played significant roles in some of Bangladesh’s epic wins over the years and the most recent one among them was by hitting a six in the penultimate ball against Sri Lanka in the Nidahas trophy.

With 12 runs needed off the last four balls, Riyad smacked a boundary and then ran two runs in the next ball. At that point, six runs were needed off the last two balls. What happened next will forever echo in the minds of the Bangladesh fans for as long as they breathe.

The vice-captain thwacked the next ball for a six to win the game with a ball remaining. When asked about whether it was the most memorable shot of his career, Riyad agreed and stated that the win was all that was needed to set the ball rolling for the Tigers in the shortest format of the game.

“Yes [it was the most memorable shot of my career], I must say that six is one of the most memorable moments in my career so far. The Nidahas Trophy was very important for us as there were a few questions about our ability in the T20 format.

“So I think we have overcome that and took a step forward. Very few believed that we were going to reach the final before the start of the tournament. But I had said before that we need a win to change the scenario of our team and everyone had that commitment and were able to do that,” he revealed to The Daily Star.

There was a lot of drama prior to the last four balls of the match. The Bangladesh skipper, Shakib Al Hasan, asked his batters to withdraw from the field after being livid over the umpire’s decision to reverse a no-ball call.

However, Mahmudullah continued batting and, as fate would have it, won the game for his team. When describing the events and the subsequent moments, Riyad affirmed that the quagmire was impossible to explain while also revealing that he thought about Bangladesh’s losses India in Bangalore and Pakistan in the Asia Cup final in 2012 in an attempt to learn from them.

“If I talk about the nerves I can't explain that situation as there was huge chaos in that over and it had a positive impact on me when it came to seizing the momentum and taking my side through to the finish line.

“I want to say one thing, even in that situation against Sri Lanka I thought of Bangalore and the Asia Cup [2012] final and what was important was that I was able to learn from those mistakes. I was lucky that we ended up on the winning side but as long I will play this game I will look to learn from those incidents.”

After elegantly powering the ball over the boundary on the leg side for a six, Mahmudullah wheeled away and jumped with his fist pumped while his lungs exploding from the roar that came from his mouth. According to the man himself, he was praying to the Almighty before Udana bowled the penultimate ball and planned to play the shot “according to the delivery.”

“First -- that four over cover, which was almost a wide ball but thankfully the timing was good and it went for four. Off the next ball, I took two runs. And before facing the fifth ball [of the over] I was literally praying to the Almighty so that I could finish it off.

“At the same time, I tried to remain calm. I always believe that calmness is very important in cricket and it has helped me in my game. So I was thinking 'just watch the ball and play according to the delivery'. I was focusing on looking at the ball till the last moment and in these situations, the batsman tends to tighten the grip and have a lot of negative thoughts.