In 1979, Murshed played in his first international competition at Kolkata, India. In 1981, placed second in the zonal tournament, held in Sharjah, UAE the same year, earning his International Master Title in the process. Later that year, he tied for first in the Asian Junior Championship, held in Dhaka, but was counted second on tiebreak since he had fewer wins (and losses) than Ricardo de Guzman (Philippines) who was awarded the title and automatic IM. Murshed participated in the 1982 World Junior Chess Championship, and although he failed to replicate his recent success, his game against Lars Schandorff of Denmark (later a grandmaster) was selected as the best game of the tournament.