In the five matches that he played in this World Cup, Shakib Al Hasan made some kind of record in every match.
As Bangladesh would take on Afghanistan on Monday at Southampton, it won’t be an exception.
He is shy of 35 runs to be the first Bangladeshi batsmen to reach the milestone of 1000 runs in World Cup and 75 runs away to reach 500-run benchmark in a single World Cup, also as the first Bangladeshi batsman.
Shakib began this edition of World Cup with 540 runs from 21 matches, starting with 2007 World Cup. But he dazzled in a way in this World Cup that he almost made all the runs that he scored in the past three tournaments.
Till date Shakib accumulated 425 in five matches with a four-match streak of fifty-plus knock that came to an end when he was dismissed for run-a-ball-41 against Australia. His past four fifty plus score read-75 against South Africa, 64 against New Zealand, 121 against England and 124 not out against West Indies.
So far Shakib’s 425 runs is the highest for any Bangladeshi batsman in a single edition of World Cup, eclipsing Mahmudullah Riyad’s 365 in 2015 World Cup.
With the kind of form, he has been going through it is believed he would reach 1000 World Cup runs milestone and 500 runs in a single tournament in the match against Afghanistan on Monday as he needs just 75 runs to capture both of the records.
Bangladesh’s match against Sri Lanka was washed out due to rain, otherwise Shakib could have already achieved the feat.
The World Cup so has been the tournament of milestone for Shakib. Here he played his 200th ODI, he became the second Bangladeshi player to amass 6000 ODI runs, he became the quickest player to join the four-member ODI double club of ‘6000 runs and 250+ wickets that also included Sanath Jayasuriya, Shahid Afridi and Jacques Kallis.
He also has four-match fifty-plus streak at the start of World Cup campaign that was only possessed by four other players-Navjot Sing Sidhu, Sachin Tendulkar, Graeme Smith and Steve Smith.
Smith has however five straight fifty plus knock (2015) and Shakib could emulate it had he scored 50 plus knock against Australia.
