Of course, Shakib is adept at handling pressure when the stakes are high. There have been many instances throughout his career when he deliberately ignored the situation. Sometimes, this is to divert attention from himself, sometimes to free up his teammates. The latest example was in the match against Afghanistan on Saturday.
Bangladesh’s superior fast bowling unit struggled with its run-up in Dharamsala’s heavy outfield. Taskin Ahmed and Shoriful Islam could not run at their optimum pace. Mustafizur Rahman was strangely most comfortable in this outfield too. But it was Shakib who gave them the first success when the fast bowlers looked pedestrian. After Afghanistan reached a strong position in the 16th over, Shakib struck next. Both times, they halted the momentum as Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah failed.
“Apart from the skill of the spinners, he read the pitch very well,” Herath said. “They bowled according to the situation. I am sure both these spinners will assess the conditions first and bowl according to the pitch. We need to play our brand of cricket with the same approach and body language, we need to play with the same mentality.” Is.” , We have a greater chance of succeeding.”
Herath said he would rate Shakib’s bowling as excellent, as he kept it high up the field during most of his spells to tempt Afghanistan’s aggressive batsmen. “To be honest, I would give him 10/10. The spinners read the pitch well. They analyzed what lines and lengths to bowl. They had very aggressive field settings. When it comes to planning, So you have to do your best.” Skills and Strengths. Having extra outfielders inside, a different kind of field setting, so that’s what we’re thinking about.”
Shakib saved his best that day by taking the last wicket. It was an innocuous delivery to Najibullah Zadran who came in really bad position to play the ball. Shakib’s ball retained its line, but when it crossed Zadran’s outside edge and hit the leg-stump, you realized how unique Shakib is despite being a left-arm orthodox bowler.
“The spinners read the pitch well. They analyzed what lines and lengths to bowl. They had very aggressive field settings. When it comes to planning, you have to play to your best skills and strengths. “
Rangana Herath praised his bowlers
“He was dangerous to guard,” Enamul Jr. said. “He could have brought the ball in without even knowing (he was doing it). I asked him. He said he had no idea. I remember That’s how Mahela Jayawardene struggled against him. He went forward defensively, but the ball went away in the last minute and bailed out. The next time he tried, he was hit in the stomach from the same spot. He did that many times during his county stint. They would go crazy trying to pick him up. He could generate electricity off his front foot. As a result, Shakib had very good pace.”
Technical skills, quick understanding of conditions, pitches and opponents and the experience of playing so many high-pressure matches means Shakib has a deep muscle memory.
The way of bearing pressure in difficult situations or scoring runs at will is similar to Shakib. But he is not as great a bowler as Shakib. A left-arm spinner can come off as very run-of-the-mill, but Shakib brings a beauty to this bowling that only a few have been able to master over the years.