Shakib Al Hasan: Man of the Match in Bangladesh vs West Indies World Cup 2019 clash

Image Courtesy: PTI

Shakib Al Hasan was on Monday adjudged Man of the Match after he shone with both bat and ball to help Bangladesh hammer West Indies by seven wickets in their fifth match of the 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup at the County Ground in Taunton on Monday. 

Chasing a formidable target of 322 runs to win, Shakib Al Hasan--who came to bat number three--not only smashed a blistering unbeaten knock of 124 runs off 99 balls but also shared a huge partnership of 189 runs with Liton Das (94) for the fourth wicket to help Bangladesh cross the mark with 51 balls to spare. (Full Scorecard: West Indies vs Bangladesh, ICC World Cup 2019)

En route to his magnificent knock laced with 16 boundaries, the 32-year-old also became only the second Bangladeshi player to reach the 6,000-run landmark. 

Besides a good show with the bat, Shakib also finished with the figures of two for 54 after Bangladesh skipper Mustafizur Rahim won the toss and opted to bowl first. Besides him, Rahman and Mohammad Saiffudin bagged three wickets each as West Indies were restricted to 321 for eight despite solid knocks by Evin Lewis (76) and Shai Hope (96).

While picking up his Player of the Match award, Shakib said that staying at the wicket till the end was the most satisfying thing. 

"It feels great. To stay at the wicket till the end was the most satisfying. I've been working on my batting and it's paying off. (On wanting to bat at 3) I know if I bat at 3 I'll get more opportunities, more time to bat. What happens sometimes if I bat at 5, is I'll come in at the 30th over or 40th over, which I felt is not ideal for me. I'm working on my bowling too. At this moment I'm doing okay but I can certainly get better. (on supporters) They have been fantastic throughout this World Cup, I hope they keep on supporting us," ESPNcricinfo quoted Shakib as saying. 

The knock also saw Shakib climb at the top in the list of highest run-scorers in the ongoing edition of the mega event. He has amassed 384 runs in four innings he has played so far. 

Overall, Shakib has notched up a total of 5,977 in 201 innings he played for Bangladesh at an average of 36.66 and a strike rate of 82.09.