Shakib Al Hasan will be leading the Bangladesh cricket team in the upcoming 2022 Asia Cup, UAE. They have been placed in Group B, which also include Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. He has been a crucial cog of the Bangladeshi setup for the last fifteen years. Thus, a lot of Bangladesh’s hopes to win the tournament or qualify for the semi finals will depend on the all rounder’s performance.

Also Read: Asia Cup 2022: Little known facts from past editions

Who is Shakib Al Hasan?

Cricketer Shakib Al Hasan represents Bangladesh at the international level and currently serves as the captain of its Test and T20 setup. He is currently ranked as the number 1 all-rounder in ICC ODI rankings, number 2 in ICC T20 rankings and number 3 in ICC Test rankings. 

The biggest name to have emerged from Bangladeshi cricket circles is without a doubt Shakib Al Hasan. Shakib, a true all-rounder, is an essential part of Bangladesh’s lineup. Over the years, he has consistently delivered for his nation.

Shakib rose to fame playing cricket for many villages near his home in Bangladesh’s Magura. In order to be selected for the Under-19 side for the tri-series against England and Sri Lanka, he spent time polishing his abilities at a government-run sports facility. 

Also Read: Watch: Rishabh Pant and Shaheen Afridi joke around before Asia Cup tie

Just before the 2007 World Cup, during the tri-series played in the West Indies, he scored his first ODI century against Canada. He helped Bangladesh defeat India by batting calmly for fifty runs and bowling ten tight overs for 44 runs without picking up a wicket. 

Shakib became the second Bangladeshi player to take100 Test wickets during the home series against the West Indies in 2012, elevating him to the position of top Test wicket-taker for Bangladesh. He also accomplished the record for taking 100 wickets and scoring 1,000 runs in the quickest time ever for an all-rounder. In just 28 games, he hit the milestone. 

Also Read: Watch: Virat Kohli and Yuzvendra Chahal meet Shaheen Afridi ahead of Asia Cup clash

Shakib became just the third player in history to have scored a hundred and taken ten wickets in the same Test in November 2014, joining Imran Khan and Ian Botham. This achievement was accomplished against Zimbabwe. 

In 2007, Shakib Al Hasan faced India in his first test. His breakthrough occurred in the 2008 Chittagong Test match against New Zealand. Shakib amassed 237 runs, including three fifty-plus scores, and six wickets in the 2012 Asia Cup. For the first time, Bangladesh advanced to the tournament’s championship game, where they were defeated by Pakistan by two runs. For his performance in the match, Shakib Al Hasan won a number of accolades. Due to his outstanding performance with both the bat and the ball at the 2019 Cricket World Cup, he was named the most valuable player of the tournament. 

Also Read: Watch: Babar Azam and Virat Kohli exchange greetings before crunch Asia Cup tie

He currently ranks third among all recipients of Player of the Tournament honours, after Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar. He led the Bangladesh cricket team in 85 games across all three forms between 2009 and 2022. Shakib currently holds the record for both the most wickets in T20 World Cups (41) and the most wickets in men’s Twenty20 Internationals (119).

The BCB named Shakib as the T20I captain after Mortaza declared his retirement from the 20-over competition.

Also Read: ‘I know where my game stands’, Virat Kohli reminds critics

IPL performance: 

Despite being the highest-ranked ODI all-rounder in the world at the time, Shakib was not selected by any of the eight clubs competing in the 2009 Indian Premier League. He again failed to find a buyer in the 2010 IPL auction. Al Hasan signed a $425,000  contract with Kolkata Knight Riders for the 2011 Indian Premier League.

In the 2011 IPL, he excelled for Kolkata Knight Riders despite all the criticism. Shakib participated in eight of Kolkata’s 18 IPL matches in 2012, helping the team win the IPL for the first time while winning two Man of the Match accolades. Shakib was a free agent when KKR released him, and Sunrisers Hyderabad purchased him during the 2018 IPL auction.

On May 24, 2018, he became the second player in T20 history to amass 300 wickets and 4,000 runs. After playing for two seasons, Shakib was released by the Sunrisers Hyderabad prior to the 2020 IPL auction. Shakib was purchased by his old team KKR for a price of 3.2 crore (US$400,000) after being listed at the highest base price of INR 2 crore for the 2021 IPL auction.

Shakib participated in the player auction the next month for the 2022 Indian Premier League, but none of the eight teams selected him, and no offers were placed on his behalf.