Shakib Al Hasan Credentials Make Him Bangladesh Cricket's First Iconic Superstar

For Bangladesh, who have competed in top flight cricket for just about two decades, they had their own stalwarts from Habibul Bashar to Tamim Iqbal to Mushfiqur Rahim. However, none comes close to the stellar heights attained by their ever dependable all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan.

Every cricket nation has a poster boy who is loved, adulated, admired for reasons beyond their cricketing skill and pedigree. He becomes that once in a generation player who has a special place in the hearts of fans. The Sachins, Laras, Warnes, Akrams, De Villiers and Jayasuriyas were the connecting factor between their national teams and the die hard fans.

For Bangladesh, who have competed in top flight cricket for just about two decades, they had their own stalwarts from Habibul Bashar to Tamim Iqbal to Mushfiqur Rahim. However,  none comes close to the stellar heights attained by their ever dependable all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan. Shakib stands tall among the all time greats of Bangladesh cricket and has etched himself among the best all-rounders to have graced the game.

Shakib's two year ban by the International Cricket Council (ICC) comes as a major jolt to Bangladesh, not only for their ongoing India tour but also to their build up to the ICC T20 World Cup next year in Australia.

Shakib along with Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mashrafe Mortaza for long have formed the nucleus of the Bangladesh team and his absence from the sport for will certainly leave a gaping hole.

The elegant southpaw has been 'Bangla Tigers' workhorse in their batting arsenal scoring runs at superlative consistency and spearheading a middle order that also features Mushfiqur Rahim, Soumya Sarkar, Mahmadullah and Sabbir Rahman in its ranks.

For the last decade or so, the left arm tweaker has been an integral part of the Bangladesh spin attack alongside the likes of Abdur Razzak, Mehedy Hasan Miraz and now Taijul Islam.

Shakib's contribution to Bangladesh cricket's rise from minnows to a notable force in the limited overs arena has been enormous. Among the current crop of Bangladesh cricketing superstars from Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mashrafe Mortaza and Mahmudullah; Shakib has been by far the most talented cricketers, equally gifted and skilled with the willow and red cherry.

For nearly  a decade, Shakib has been Bangladesh's perennial representation among the top 10 across categories in the ICC Players rankings. He has been consistently ranked as the Numero Uno all-rounder in international cricket for considerable time periods. No other Bangladeshi cricketer has consistently featured in the ICC Top 10 rankings other than Shakib.

To be hailed as the premier all-rounder in world cricket in an era where the likes of Shane Watson, Ben Stokes, Dwayne Bravo, Angelo Matthews, Glen Maxwell, Chris Woakes, Ravindra Jadeja, Vernon Philander and Keiron Pollard among many others ...competing is no mean feat.

The record books prove Shakib's credentials as Bangladesh cricket's iconic superstar. Be it the run scoring  or wicket taking charts, Shakib Al Hasan is a common name which consistently appears among the very  top. He is Bangladesh's second highest run-geter (6323 runs) and wicket taker (260) in ODIs. In the T20 format, he is the top run getter (1567 runs ) and leading wicket taker (92 wkts) for the 'Bangla Tigers'.

Shakib had a stellar 2019 ICC World Cup ending up as the third highest run scorer of the tournament with 606 runs laced with 2 tons and 5 half centuries.

Shakib has been an outright match winner for his team, bagging 21 Man of the Match Awards, the most by a Bangladeshi cricketer  across the three formats of the game.

One often undermines Shakib's leadership skills owing to his superlative record as a world class player. He has led the team with distinction in all three formats and is one of their most experienced skippers behind  Mashrafe Mortaza Mushfiqur Rahim and Habibul Bashar at the  international level.

To think about a Shakib-less Bangladesh team competing on the green turf is something quite unrealistic and unimaginable. However, it is the starc reality that Bangladesh would be without the services of their stalwart for the next 12 months. During the star all-rounder's absence, seasoned campaigners like Tamil Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mustafizur Rahman, Soumya Sarkar and Mahmudullah will have to lead from the front to challenge the big guns in international cricket.