sakib al hasan

Shakib Al Hasan

Full name:	Shakib Al Hasan
Born:	24th March 1987, Magura, Khulna, Bangladesh
Batting:	Left-hand batsman
Bowling:	Slow left-arm orthodox
Teams:	Bangladesh (Test: 2007-2009/10); Bangladesh (ODI: 2006-2009/10); Bangladesh (Int Twenty20: 2006/07-2009/10); Bangladesh (Twenty20 World Cup: 2007/08-2009); Khulna Division (Main FC: 2004/05-2008/09); Khulna Division (Main ListA: 2007/08); Khulna Division (Main Twenty20: 2009/10);

  Early years and youth cricket

Shakib began playing football at a young age and was taught by his father who previously played for Khulna Division, and a cousin had represented Bangladesh. Despite football running in the family, Shakib "was fairly proficient [at cricket] and was often hired to play for different villages".In one of these matches Shakib impressed an umpire who arranged for him to practice with the Islampur Para Club, a team in the Magura Cricket League. During the practice session, Shakib batted aggressively and bowled fast, as he usually did, but also chose to experiment with spin bowling and proved effective. He was picked to play for Islampur and took a wicket with his first ball; it was his first delivery with a proper cricket ball, having previously generally played with a taped tennis ball.
At the age of 15, Shakib was representing Bangladesh U19s. In 2005, during the final of a tri-nation tournament involving England and Sri Lanka's U19 teams, Shakib scored an 86-ball century and took three wickets to help his team to victory. Between 2005 and 2006, Hasan played 18 Youth One Day Internationals; he scored 563 runs at an average of 35.18, and took 22 wickets at an average of 20.18.

Career

International breakthrough

Hasan was included in Bangladesh's senior squad to tour Zimbabwe in 2006. Along with Farhad Reza and Mushfiqur Rahim, Hasan was one of three uncapped players to be included in the squad.Shakib and Reza were described as "very good cricketers in all departments of the game", and Faruq Ahmed – the chief selector – said that Bangladesh had "high hopes from them and it's time for them to perform at the international level".In September 2006, Shakib was one of three players to be granted a rookie contract with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), along with Farhad Reza and Mehrab Hossain Jr. This increased the number of players with central contracts and under the control of the BCB from 20 to 23.

Bangladesh's leading all-rounder

Shakib took his first Test wicket against South Africa, bowling AB De Villiers. He has become an increasingly important part of Bangladeshi Test cricket including taking a record breaking seven wicket haul and scoring a half century against New Zealand in October 2008. He then got 5/70 and 96 against Sri Lanka in the Boxing Day test at Dhaka, for which he was named man of the match. He is currently ranked as the best ODI all-rounder in the world according to the ICC ODI rankings.
Although he was part of the auction of players for the 2009 Indian Premier League, Shakib was not chosen by any of the eight teams and no bids were made for him. This was despite being rated as the world's best ODI all-rounder at the time. Fellow teammate-Mashrafe Mortaza, who was bought in the auction, said "I would have been a lot happier if Shakib had got a team because he truly deserved it for his sensational form with the bat and ball".

Vice-captaincy

At the beginning of 2009, there was speculation over Mohammad Ashraful's position as captain after a succession of defeats for Bangladesh and a run of poor form for Ashraful. Hasan was considered as a possible successor by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), however the BCB was cautious of over-burdening the all-rounder and decided against the move. Other candidates were discounted, and Ashraful remained as captain.Later in 2009, Ashraful's captaincy was again under scrutiny after Bangladesh exited the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 in the first round as a result of being defeated by Ireland and India. When Mashrafe Mortaza replaced Mohammad Ashraful in June 2009, Shakib was appointed vice-captain, filling the position vacated by Mortaza.

In July–August 2009, Bangladesh toured the West Indies. When Mortaza injured his knee in the first Test, he was unable to take to the field on the final day and Shakib took over as captain. He and Mahmudullah led Bangladesh's bowling attack, sharing 13 wickets in the match and securing a historic win for Bangladesh. It was Bangladesh's first against the West Indies, their first overseas Test victory, and only their second Test win.This was achieved against a very inexperienced West Indies side as a result of a dispute between the West Indies Cricket Board and the West Indies Players' Association over pay. The first XI had made themselves unavailable for selection and a new squad had to be chosen. Seven West Indies players made their Test debut in the match and the side was captained by Floyd Reifer who had played the last of his four Tests ten years earlier.

[edit] Stand-in captain

In Mortaza's absence through injury, Shakib led Bangladesh for the remainder of the tour.Under Shakib's leadership Bangladesh went on to win the second Test, and in the process secured their first overseas series win. Individually Shakib performed well, earning both the player-of-the-match and player-of-the-series awards, scoring 16 and 96* with the bat and taking 3/59 and 5/70 with the ball. He scored 159 runs in the series at an average of 53.00 and was Bangladesh's second highest run-scorer for the series; his haul of 13 wickets at an average of 18.76 from both matches meant Shakib was the equal highest wicket-taker for the series along with West Indies fast bowler Kemar Roach.
After winning the Test series 2–0, Bangladesh proceeded to whitewash the ODI series, winning 3–0. The West Indies' dispute remained unsolved for the whole of Bangladesh's tour and the West Indies continued to field an inexperienced side. Shakib collected two half centuries in the ODI series, averaging 45.00, and was the third highest run-scorer in the series;he also took 2 wickets at an average of 48.00.For his performance in the ODIs, Hasan was named the man of the series.
Hasan was appointed captain for Bangladesh's tour of Zimbabwe in August 2009 as Mortaza was still injured. In the second ODI of the five match series in Zimbabwe in August 2009, Shakib scored 104 off only 64 balls before being unfortunately run-out – his third ODI century – to help his team to their highest score in ODIs and lead Bangladesh to a 2–0 lead in the series. He finished the series with 170 runs from 5 matches at an average of 42.50 – fifth highest run-scorer – and 6 wickets an average of 39.66, fourth highest wicket-taker in the series.
Following his team's 4–1 victory in the ODI series against Zimbabwe, Hasan travelled to Australia to undergo medical treatment for acute groin pain. He had been experiencing pain since the end of the West Indies tour, but had decided to play through the pain and lead Bangladesh in Zimbabwe. Hasan was nominated for the Cricket of the Year and Test Player of the Year in the 2009 ICC Awards, the only Bangladesh player to be nominated in either category that year.

Home ODI series against Zimbabwe

Shakib's success meant that it was not a given that Mortaza would replace him as captain once fit, and it was announced in September 2009 that Mortaza was return as captain for Bangladesh's home ODI series against Zimbabwe the following month and Shakib would return to the role of vice-captain. However, Mortaza failed to return from arthroscopic surgery on both knees in time for the series, and Shakib was again named captain.
In Bangladesh's defeat in the opening match of the 5 match series, Shakib scored 13 and went wicket-less in his full allotment of overs. After the match he was critical of his sides performance, "We made too many mistakes," Shakib said. "The batsmen, myself included, needed to stay at the wicket. Too many wickets were lost in the early part of the innings and we never recovered. This is a nice wake-up call. I definitely feel that 4-1 is possible from here if we don't repeat the errors in this game. We are a better team than they are." His prediction turned out to be true, as Bangladesh won the next four games and the series 4-1.

County calling

In November 2009, Shakib was signed by Worcestershire to play in the 2010 season, and he is set to be the first Bangladeshi to play county cricket when he joins the the county following Bangladesh's tour of England. Shakib, who followed county cricket in his youth, said "County cricket has traditionally been the stage for the world's best players and it is a matter of great pride for me to be associated with a club that has an overwhelming history and had been home to so many legendary cricketers." Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire's director of cricket, stated "I have been following his [Shakib's] progress for some time and it is clear to me that he is a very good player. His current ICC rankings prove this and I know he is hungry for success. His all-round skills will be a great boost to our young team for the business end of the season."

Records and statistics

Test matches

Records:

• Highest seventh wicket partnership for Bangladesh: 145 with Mahmudullah v New Zealand, 15 February 2010
• Best bowling figures in an innings Bangladesh: 7/36 v New Zealand, 17 October 2008
• Best career bowling average for Bangladesh (minimum qualification of 15 wickets): 48 wickets at 28.27 from 13 matches

Man of the match awards:

Date	Opponent	Ground	Record/Scorecards
26–31 December 2008	Sri Lanka	Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka	Batting: 26 and 96; Bowling: 5/70 and 1/134
17–20 July 2009	West Indies	Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago	Batting: 16 and 96*; Bowling: 3/59 and 5/70

Career performance:

		Batting				Bowling
Opposition	Matches	Runs	Average	High Score	100/50	Runs	Wickets	Average	Best
India	2	72	24.00	30	0/0	91	0	–	–
New Zealand	3	171	42.75	71	0/1	222	12	18.50	7/36
South Africa	4	121	15.12	40	0/0	351	12	29.25	6/99
Sri Lanka	3	192	32.00	96	0/1	449	11	40.81	5/70
West Indies	2	159	71.94	96*	0/1	244	13	18.76	5/70
Overall	14	715	29.79	96*	0/3	1,357	48	28.27	7/36

ODI matches

Records

• Highest fifth wicket partnership for Bangladesh: 119 with Raqibul Hasan v South Africa, 12 March 2008
• Highest ninth wicket partnership for Bangladesh: 97 with Mashrafe Mortaza v Pakistan, 16 April 2007

Man of the Series awards:

Date	Opponent	Record/Series link
January 2009	Zimbabwe	70 runs at an average of 35.00; 6 wickets at an average of 8.33.
July 2009	West Indies	170 runs at an average of 42.50; 6 wickets at an average of 39.66

Man of the match awards:

Date	Opponent	Ground	Record/Scorecards
15 December 2006	Scotland	Bir Shrestha Shahid Ruhul Amin Stadium, Chittagong	Batting: 20*; Bowling: 5/70
4 February 2007	Zimbabwe	Harare Sports Club, Harare	Batting: 68; Bowling: 1/40
28 February 2007	Canada	Antigua Recreation Ground, St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda	Batting: 134*; Bowling: 2/36
16 April 2008	Pakistan	Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka	Batting: 108; Bowling: 1/34
14 January 2009	Sri Lanka	Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka	Batting: 92*; Bowling: 0/24

Career performance:

		Batting				Bowling
Opposition	Matches	Runs	Average	High Score	100 / 50	Runs	Wickets	Average	Best
Australia	4	78	19.50	27	0/0	123	4	30.75	2/38
Bermuda	2	68	–	42*	0/0	48	3	16.00	2/12
Canada	1	134	–	134*	1/0	36	2	18.00	2/36
England	1	57	–	57*	0/1	19	0	–	–
India	3	108	36.00	53	0/2	127	2	63.50	2/43
Ireland	4	12	4.00	7	0/0	144	6	24.00	2/16
Kenya	3	58	29.00	25*	0/0	86	3	28.66	2/32
New Zealand	7	72	12.00	25	0/0	251	8	31.37	3/56
Pakistan	5	192	38.40	108	1/1	217	5	43.40	2/50
Scotland	2	64	64.00	44	0/0	21	2	10.50	1/8
South Africa	6	147	24.50	52	0/2	268	5	53.60	2/48
Sri Lanka	7	189	37.80	92*	0/2	211	4	52.75	2/22
West Indies	5	135	27.00	65	0/2	146	3	48.66	1/26
Zimbabwe	15	420	38.18	68	0/2	443	23	19.26	3/11
Overall	65	1,734	34.00	134*	2/12	2,140	70	30.57	3/11