Feature

Shakib Al Hasan - The Man behind the Milestone

Interviewed and written by Nishat Tasneem and Sadia Afrin Khan on behalf of Star Campus.
Photos taken by Al Nahian

JUST a few days back we Bangladeshis could hardly think of seeing any of our cricketers to top an ICC ranking. But Shakib Al Hasan is the man to make this dream real. This 21-year old all rounder is the first Bangladeshi to stand as the top all rounder of the world. Sakib made his one-day debut in the final match against Zimbabwe in July 2006 at Harare. Since then he has proved to be an asset to his team. Even in the last 2 series--against Zimbabwe in the Grameenphone series and in the tri nation series involving both Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka--he played fabulously well and became the man of the series in both. For last few weeks he has made the crowd applaud for him by playing constantly good cricket both with bat and ball. He shared his feelings about his continuous success with us.

Star Campus(SC): This is the first time in world cricket that a Bangladeshi player has become the number one in ICC ranking. How does it feel to be on top of the world?

Shakib Al Hasan(SAH): Well it always feels great whenever I think of it. But it was never my goal. If I can continue playing well these things will come automatically.

SC: How did you feel when you became the man of the series consecutively?

SAH: Surely it was enjoyable to be the Man of The Series. Especially when it happens against a big team like Sri Lanka it feels even more better.

SC: Sri Lanka is surely a big team. What was your strategy against them?

SAH: I knew that Sri Lanka will be more dependent on their world best spinners. But to face their spinners successfully at the later stage of the game, survival tactics were needed against their pace attack. I survived their pace attack, I was set in the crease and I could manage their spinners successfully so I did well.

SC: Murali Dharan is one of the best spinners of the world. How did you face him?

SAH: I got tips from batsmen like Brian Lara and Graham Thorpe who were successful against Muralidharan in the past. They used to play sweep shot for which Murali has to change his line and length frequently. So I applied the same technique.

SC: You are very young compared to other all-rounders of the world. How far can you go?

SAH: It is very difficult to predict in such a game like cricket. As you know cricket is a game of uncertainty and nobody knows what will be happening in the next moment. Be that as it may, I will try my best to perform better in the field with bat and ball as long as I play.

SC: You are a good batsman as well as a good bowler. Which one do you prefer more?

SAH: To me both exist side by side. I cannot think of one leaving the other.

SC: Did you always plan to be a cricketer?

SAH: Not exactly. I used to play football at my early age. After Bangladesh won the ICC Trophy the whole country was affected by cricket fever and I was no exception. So I started playing cricket and now I am playing for the National Team.

SC: What is the role of your family behind your success?

SAH: I got support from my family. When I took admission in BKSP nobody was sure about my inclusion in the National Team but they still allowed me to continue with some uncertainty about the future.

SC: Pakistan is touring Bangladesh in Feb/Mar. So what will be your game plan against them?

SAH: My last tour against Pakistan was good. But definitely I will have some extra advantage in my home ground. But I am not thinking about the series now and am trying to concentrate on performing well in the premier league.