Tamim, Mushfiqur fight to win 5K race in Test cricket

When Bangladesh take on Sri Lanka for the first Test tomorrow (Sunday) here, there will be an individual battle between the two best batters of the side - Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim.

Both of the mainstays of Bangladesh are on the verge of 5000 runs in Test cricket with Mushfiqur being the frontrunner, needing just 68 runs to reach the milestone.

Tamim now has 4848 runs under his belt but the kind of form he is in, it won't be surprising if he reaches the magical figure as the first Bangladeshi batter.

Mushfiqur could have reached this milestone in South Africa but he was going through an off-form, making him doubtful to touch the milestone ahead of Tamim. However, the good thing is that he has a record to envy against Sri Lanka, against whom, he got his first of three double centuries in 2013. He in fact was the first batter of Bangladesh to hit a double ton. He had already scored 1043 runs at an average of 45.34 against Sri Lanka in 15 matches.

Sri Lanka is the only team, against whom Mushfiqur scored more than 1000 runs.

Tamim meanwhile scored 784 runs in 11 matches at an average of 37.33 against Sri Lanka. His highest against the Island nation is 92, which meant he couldn't score a century against this side as of now.

Now the question is: who will win the battle between the two finest players to reach the magical milestone as the first Bangladeshi batter.