Which Shakib Al Hasan will Bangladesh witness now?

On June 2, 2022, the BCB announced the return of Shakib Al Hasan as the captain of Bangladesh's Test team, with Litton Kumar Das as the vice-captain.

A few days ago, Mominul Haque had stepped down as the skipper, following the home series loss to Sri Lanka. He stated that he was resigning from the role of captain to focus on his batting.

This can be understood. Mominul averages just 16.20 with the bat this year and as a skipper, has won just three Tests, losing 12, and drawing two.

Before Mominul's resignation, BCB boss Nazmul Hassan had stated clearly to popular newspaper Daily Star that he had no intentions of changing the captain of the Test side.

But the very next day, this resignation put Nazmul Hassan and Co. under a bit of pressure to choose a suitable captain for the tough tour of the West Indies.

Shakib Al Hasan as Test captain has been a topsy-turvy ride

Under Shakib Al Hasan's captaincy, Bangladesh conquered West Indies back in 2009 (against a second-string West Indies team). He would captain the side for six more matches in the first half of 2010 and one more Test in 2011, against Zimbabwe, before falling out of favour with then BCB President Mustafa Kamal.

Shakib led from the front in the West Indies in 2009, earning both the Player-of-the-Match and Player-of-the-Series awards.

He scored 159 runs in the two-Test series at an average of 53.00 and was Bangladesh's second-highest run-scorer in those matches. His haul of 13 wickets at an average of 18.76 from both matches meant Shakib was the equal highest wicket-taker for the series along with West Indies fast bowler Kemar Roach.

After winning the Test series 2–0, Bangladesh went on to win the ODI series 3-0. Shakib collected two half-centuries in the ODI series also, averaging 45.00, and was the third-highest run-scorer in the three ODIs. He also took two wickets at an average of 48.00. For his performances in the ODIs, Shakib was named the Man of the Series.

After that, in the home ODI series against Zimbabwe, Shakib finished with 170 runs from five matches at an average of 42.50 – the fifth-highest run-scorer in the series. He grabbed six wickets at an average of 39.66 and was the fourth-highest wicket-taker in the series.

In November 2009, Shakib Al Hasan was named The Wisden Cricketer's "Test Player of the Year."

The following year, as England toured Bangladesh, under Shakib's captaincy, the hosts gave the tourists a really tough time. With the ball, Shakib was brilliant as he fetched eight wickets in that two-match Test series.

Had DRS been available back in those days, the results might have been different. He gave up the captaincy in 2010 with the intention of focusing on his own performance.

But a few months later, he would discover himself as the skipper again because Mashrafe Mortaza got injured. This time, under his captaincy, Bangladesh would whitewash a New Zealand side and gun down Zimbabwe.

After a frustrating World Cup at home and a fall-out with Mustafa Kamal, Shakib Al Hasan was removed from the captaincy.

The all-rounder returned to the role after a gap of six years, replacing Mushfiqur Rahim. He continued in that position for two years, gaining victories against West Indies and Zimbabwe at home in 2018 and a defeat against Afghanistan in 2019 at Chattogram.

Then, he had to serve a two-year ban imposed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for not reporting a bookie's approach the same year. But during the second year, that ban was suspended as Shakib did not commit further offences under the ACU code or the anti-corruption code of any national federation.

 Also, he participated promptly and fully in the anti-corruption education and/or rehabilitation programmes specified by the ICC.

The Australian duo of Steve Smith and David Warner were not brought into leadership roles immediately after their involvement in the 'Sandpaper-gate' incident in 2018.

But Nazmul Hassan decided to invest faith in the player who is well-known for not being that interested in playing the 5-day format and has had several disciplinary issues.

Nazmul Hassan said, while answering a question on Thursday about Shakib's transgressions in the past and whether appointing him as captain is appropriate:

"Whatever options we have in Tests, we felt this was our best option. You will notice something that is different about him [Shakib] compared to others. There was a clear difference between the punishment and the statement which was given to him by the ICC. There is a clear-cut difference and if you see it, you will know."

Shakib fulfilled the conditions given by the ICC and that prompted him to feature in the series against the West Indies in 2021.

Which Shakib Al Hasan will turn up this time?

Despite options like Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim, the reappointment of Shakib Al Hasan has made everyone happy because of the fact that he is the best performer in the team. The all-rounder also possesses a very smart cricketing brain. As captain, he is proactive and has the ability to handle pressure on and off the field.

The only problem with Shakib is his whimsical behaviour, because of which the team has lost his services on many occasions in Test cricket.

There have been times when Shakib decided to cut his name off from tough Test tours in South Africa and New Zealand, while others showed better commitment.

As skipper, one thing that Shakib must ensure is - his commitment to the five-day format. If he can do that, one can not only expect stability in the Test unit but better outcomes.

Litton Das would also be able to learn and grow under Shakib's captaincy, but one hopes that Shakib's whims don't expose Litton too early.

Note: This article has been published at Sportskeeda on 03/06/2022 Which Shakib Al Hasan will Bangladesh witness now?

Thank You

Faisal Caesar