BANGLADESH Cricket needed one such icon. A team with youthful exuberance was faltering time and again. So it was looking for a leader who could show them the right direction. There could be no better occasion for the emergence of one such leader, Shakib-Al-Hasan.
Here came Shakib-ul-Hasan, a man of personality and leadership qualities who has all the attributes to be at the top of the ladder and also pull his teammates up.
The transition of Bangladesh cricket team to the top level of world cricket was quite different from other Test cricketing nations. Other countries had long cricketing history. They had their legends and icons to follow. But in stark contrast we did not have any one to follow or emulate his feats. The senior players were forced to retire all at once. The younger boys had to take their places for which they were not prepared. A smoother transition in eliminating seniors and inducting fresh blood would have done a world of good to them. Playing together, the junior players could learn from the seniors and also could get confidence and grow in strength. The seniors could be able to leave examples behind them for the juniors to follow (The maiden Test century by Aminul Islam Bulbul is an example).
But that did not happen. So, someone from these young outfits was needed to come out of the shell and act with maturity. Shakib probably transformed quickly and elevated himself to meet the demand of the situation. He has a strong personality to influence his teammates. Some of his teammates including Mashrafe Mortaza admitted his strong influence on all the team mates. Shakib's rise to the top of the world ranking has given them strong confidence in themselves. In a recent interview Mashrafe mentioned that the history of Bangladesh cricket will be rewritten by Shakib-Al-Hasan.
There are rays of big hopes at the end of the long and difficult road ahead of us which is becoming increasingly visible with time. Players like Shakib can illumine the domain of Bangladesh cricket on its way to a brighter future.
Rashna Sharmin
East West University
[email protected]
