Shakib-Al Hasan’s relaxed approach at the Eden during Bangladesh’s training session on Friday may give an impression that he had a solid stint with his mentor Nazmul Abedeen Fahim in Mirpur.

It was only towards the end of the practice session on the eve of Bangladesh’s World Cup clash against the Netherlands that the skipper took to the nets and batted for a quarter of an hour or so.

People in the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) may well have seen red when Shakib
left the squad for that short stint in Mirpur ahead of Saturday’s clash at the Eden. But the players don’t seem to find any fault with the spinner all-rounder.

Pacer Taskin Ahmed, likely to return to the XI in place of fellow quick Hasan Mahmud, insisted that Shakib’s sudden departure “hadn’t affected the team much”.

“After he came back, all of us had a really good time. Actually, he had gone there for some improvement as he wasn’t batting as well as what was expected of him.

“He had gone just for some specific practice to do well for our team, so we should appreciate that more. Besides, he had spoken to our team management before leaving, while we were also on rest that day (Wednesday).

“On the official practice day, he’s here. We don’t have any problem, and neither are we affected by any problem,” Taskin, whose right shoulder is now in better condition, explained.

The skipper had left for Mirpur while the rest of the Bangladesh squad landed in Calcutta on Wednesday evening.

He was supposed to rejoin on Friday, but returned on Thursday evening on being prodded by the BCB.

“He was struggling with the bat. So, to address that concern, he batted for some four hours in Mirpur. As I said, he went purely because he felt an improved showing from
him would aid the team,” Taskin added.