Neither a lengthy net session under lights on the eve of the match against Pakistan nor a controversial trip back home during the course of the men’s ODI World Cup to train with his childhood mentor proved beneficial for Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan as he perished to yet another short ball on Tuesday.
For a passing moment, it did seem Shakib (43, 64b, 4x4) would pull his team across to a ‘safe’ 250-plus score on a slow, gripping track in Kolkata. He momentarily woke up the 27,940-strong Eden Gardens crowd from its slumber with three back-to-back fours in the 37th over. At that point, it had been 53 deliveries since the ball last rolled down to the fence.
But it was 33-year-old Iftikhar Ahmed, a batting all-rounder armed with a handy off-spin, who was bearing the brunt. It meant Shakib was in familiar waters. The inside-out lift over cover, the audacious sweep, and the punch straight down the ground were all on glorious display.
Against pace, Shakib has struggled to the extent that the No. 1 all-rounder in the 50-over format shockingly finds his name at the very top of the list of batters who have the worst average versus fast bowlers in CWC23 (minimum 60 balls faced).
Shakib’s 8.3 would have stuck out like a sore thumb on the list if not for the presence of English superstars Jos Buttler (13.2, five dismissals) and Ben Stokes (12.7, three outs) in the top five. In the six World Cup games he has played thus far, he has always been sent back to the hut by a pacer.
Having faced 156 short balls in the 2019 men’s World Cup, Shakib had scored 160 runs. And he wasn’t dismissed even once. When Bangladesh’s score breached the 100-run mark against Pakistan on Tuesday, Shakib had scored 21 off 26 short balls in India 2023. He has fallen to the short delivery five times now, arguably the most remarkable of these dismissals coming against Afghanistan. His trigger movement on the back foot had him slash hard at a slower bouncer from Azmatullah Omarzai. As a result, a thick top-edge ballooned to Fazalhaq Farooqi at deep square-leg.
Even Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf sniggered after dismissing Shakib with the short-ball ploy on Tuesday. Moreover, although he wasn’t aware of a specific plan to bowl short to the Bangladesh skipper, Player-of-the-Match Fakhar Zaman said that employing the short-pitched stuff against the Tigers was something that was discussed.
So, what went wrong? According to former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar on Star Sports’ Masterclass, Shakib’s tendency to ride the bounce with hard hands coupled with an awkward swivel pull is mostly what has been causing his undoing lately. And there are two methods to deal with the nagging issue.
The first, a defensive approach, is what we had often seen Virender Sehwag do. The former Indian batter used to stretch himself to meet the rising ball with a straight bat pointing downward.
An aggressive approach would require one to get behind the line of the ball quickly before pulling with soft hands. It is not an easy skill to master, West Indies’ 2016 T20 World Cup star Carlos Brathwaite tells Sportstar. “I was never good against the short ball, mate. I always found it difficult to play,” he says.
But surprisingly, Shakib himself had set up a masterclass in the same way back in the first ODI against New Zealand in 2016 in Christchurch. Although he scored 59 and Bangladesh went on to lose the game by 77 runs, it was a memory that would linger.
Shakib had found himself in the middle in the 12th over with the scoreboard reading 48 for three. James Neesham had just completed a double-wicket maiden.
Shakib Al Hasan was welcomed by a snorter from Lockie Ferguson during a stoic knock in Christchurch in 2016. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
The next over saw Lockie Ferguson welcome the new man with a snorter. Though the ball sailed wide down leg, Shakib would have already guessed by then what was to follow.
And right on cue, a series of bouncers started coming in. Five overs later, one got to see the first sign of aggression from the batter as Shakib swiftly gyrated on his backfoot to pull Neesham over backward square. No real power, but exquisite timing.
Tim Southee was up next, and this time the short ball rose outside off. Shakib was quick to reach out on one leg to bludgeon this over midwicket.
The most impressive over may have been the 24th when Shakib scored two boundaries against the bouncer. Soon after the fielder at midwicket was moved to gully, Shakib smartly pulled through the no man’s land. Two balls later, he used the pace to his advantage to dab one through point.
He will be facing the Kiwis once again when the World Cup concludes, but this time it won’t be against the picture-postcard hilly backdrop of the Hagley Oval. The New Zealand team will travel to Bangladesh for two Tests, three ODIs, and three T20Is between November 28 and December 31.
As things stand, the Bangla Tigers are out of contention for a place in the CWC23 semifinal, having suffered six straight defeats. They are also likely to miss out on a Champions Trophy 2025 berth, the tournament after which Shakib had planned to hang his boots.
If Shakib continues to play after the ongoing World Cup, the 36-year-old will hope to somehow repair the chinks in his armour as quickly as possible.
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