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Follow UsWhen Shakib Al Hasan conceded that he might never play Test cricket after this ongoing Test between India and Bangladesh in Kanpur, he would have hoped to sign off on a high.
Arguably the greatest Bangladesh cricketer of all time, Shakib experienced a high point in his Test career just a month ago when he hit the winning runs in Rawalpindi to help the Tigers win their first ever series against Pakistan in whites.
So it goes without saying that he would have hoped for a sweet farewell, at least from a personal standpoint if not from a team standpoint overall.
But reality has been brutal for the man who is arguably the greatest cricketer Bangladesh have produced.
Shakib picked four wickets in India’s first innings on Day 4 but all four were nothing more than a consolation. They were insignificant in the larger context, and had no meaning attached to them other than being a mere number. That he got taken apart anyway, leaking runs at an economy of 7.10, spoke volumes.
This consolation 4-fer came on the back of a disappointing showing with the bat on the first day of the Test, where he registered 9 runs in a bizarre, fidgety 17-ball stay in which he eventually held out to the deep fielder, trying to take Ravichandran Ashwin on.
On Day 5, with Bangladesh looking to avoid a very embarrassing two-day defeat, Shakib had one last opportunity to salvage his disappointing Test and series and potentially sign off on a high from red-ball cricket.
Victory was never going to be possible for the Tigers but, before the day began, Shakib had the chance to show real defiance and keep India at bay. At the very least, such a showing would have marked a fitting end to his career, if this is indeed going to be his last ever Test.
But instead the end couldn’t have been grimmer for the 37-year-old. He came in at 94/6, with the match already all but gone. It was the first time in 16 years Shakib had walked in to bat at No.8 or lower in Test cricket.
And then he perished for a duck in the tamest manner imaginable, chipping an innocuous delivery from Ravindra Jadeja straight back to the bowler.
If this is indeed the end, it’s not the heroic one Shakib would have dreamt of when he hinted heavily that he was hanging up his boots post the conclusion of this two-Test series — being a non-factor with the ball in hand, treated like a club bowler, and then a duck with the bat. All the while watching his team do an abject surrender, slipping to one of their most embarrassing defeats in recent times, with him being one of the key culprits for the same.
Will Shakib extend his Test career and sign off in Mirpur against the Proteas? We don’t know. That probably depends on non-cricketing factors. But one thing’s clear: you bet he now wishes that he retired in the aftermath of the Rawalpindi win.
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