Muralitharan and Graeme Swann troubled me the most: Shakib Al Hasan

Arguably the greatest cricketer from Bangladesh ever to have graced the game of cricket, Shakib Al Hasan is currently busy with his IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders in the 10th edition of the tournament. The No.1 all-rounder across all 3 formats got his first game against the Gujarat Lions which the home team lost courtesy a magical innings from GL captain Suresh Raina.

Shakib has been a sensational all-rounder for Bangladesh over the years and it was surprising why he was left out from the initial few games that KKR played despite being available. Colin de Grandhomme was preferred ahead of him which was really a baffling move, to say the least looking at the credentials of the left-arm spinner.

While he is a pretty tough character on the tough, he is a chilled out guy outside the field. Before leaving for a team activity, Shakib joined Cricbuzz for a small chat where he recalled some of the memorable moments in his career and answered several questions thrown at him. He is a pretty honest guy and his answers were pretty straight forward too.

When asked which bowler get the better of him more often than not, Shakib said, it was the two world class off spinners Muttiah Muralitharan and Graeme Swann who troubled him the most. Both were champion bowlers during their hey days and tormented star-studded batting line-ups from all over the world.

Shakib has been a part of the Caribbean Premier League and he was asked to compare about the two tournaments. He said according to the atmosphere in the dressing room it was no different but in West Indies, the people are more fun loving and more into enjoyment than the outcome of the match whereas in India the spectators always want their team to win.

“In terms of the dressing room, not much. The culture is a bit different but in terms of atmosphere, there is a difference. In the Caribbean, people are more fun loving, not into the game that much, they just want to enjoy themselves. Here, people are more into the game, they want their team to win.”

During the chat, he also revealed that Lionel Messi was one sportsperson he can’t stop fan buoying about. He said Kuldeep Yadav was the laziest in the KKR dressing room but when it comes to the Bangladesh dressing room it’s none other than Shakib himself.

He rates the victory against England in a Test in 2016 and the double century against New Zeland very recently as some of the best cricketing moments in his career till date. “As a team, winning against England recently. Personally, the 200 I scored against New Zealand,” Shakib said.