Former India batsman Virender Sehwag has criticized Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan for his poor performance against South Africa in the 2024 T20 World Cup. The veteran all-rounder scored only three runs in the chase as Bangladesh fell by four runs in New York on Monday, June 10.
Shakib has had a difficult past six months or so. He left during the middle stages of the 2023 ODI World Cup due to injury, surrendered his captaincy, and struggled with an eye ailment before returning to international cricket in a home series against Zimbabwe.
Sehwag felt that as a senior player, Shakib should have played a larger role in the run chase. Instead, the left-handed batter died on the fourth ball of his innings in the eighth over while attempting to draw Anrich Nortje’s blazing short ball.
“If he was included in the squad for experience, then we were not able to see it. Atleast spend some time at this wicket, it is not like you are not Hayden or Gilchrist who can play a pull shot of a short ball, you are just a player from Bangladesh. Play according to your standards. When you are not able to play hook or pull, so just play the strokes that you know,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
Shakib batted down the order in Bangladesh’s World Cup opener against Sri Lanka in Dallas, scoring only eight runs off 14 deliveries before being caught by Maheesh Theekshana.
“He should be ashamed of his numbers if they are like this”- Virender Sehwag on Shakib Al Hasan’s T20 stats since the 2021 T20 World Cup
Shakib Al Hasan has not been particularly effective with the bat in the shorter format for some time, and he recently had a disappointing Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) campaign.
In international cricket, he averaged 19, 24, 46, and 11 from 2021 to 2024, during which he played 45 innings. Shakib scored only 131 runs and 44 runs in the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cups when Bangladesh most needed him while batting mostly in the top or early middle orders.
“I felt that Shakib’s time in T20 cricket was up a long time back, during the last T20 World Cup. He has been captain for such a long time, he is such a senior player, and after that if your numbers are like these, he should be ashamed of it, right?,” Sehwag stated in the same discussion.
Even he should realize that he is not cut out for T20s anymore, and announce retirement. When I played the 2012 T20 World Cup in Sri Lanka, I realized that the likes of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, and then there was this left-arm pacer from Afghanistan, I was not able to score against them at will. So, I straight up told the selectors to not consider me for the format anymore. Because, at the end of the day, you know your level and when you are not able to contribute, then what is the point of playing. So, I don’t think he should play or be played,” Virender Sehwag concluded.
Bangladesh are next scheduled to take on the Netherlands at St.Vincent on Thursday, June 13.
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