Shakib’s Response to Sehwag’s Retirement Comments

Following former Indian opener Virender Sehwag’s comment that "Shakib should retire," social media has been abuzz for the past two days. Shakib Al Hasan put an end to this criticism with an unbeaten 64 off 46 balls against the Netherlands. Many believe this performance was a fitting response to Sehwag’s comments. But does Shakib think the same?

In the first two matches of the World Cup, Shakib was not in his usual form. He struggled with both the bat and the ball, failing to score runs or take wickets. During this period, his ranking dropped from 1 to 5. Many criticized Shakib's poor performance, including former Indian captain Virender Sehwag.

On Thursday, Shakib played a crucial role in the victory against the Netherlands and was named Player of the Match. During the post-match press conference, the topic of Sehwag's comments came up. When asked if his performance was a response to Sehwag, Shakib said:

“A player never comes to answer any questions. A player's job is to bat if he is a batter and contribute to the team. If he is a bowler, his job is to bowl well; taking wickets involves luck.”

Shakib added, “When he is fielding, his job is to save every run and catch every ball that comes his way. There’s really nothing to answer to anyone here. A current player should focus on how much he can contribute to the team... When he can't contribute, naturally, people will talk, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”

Shakib expressed his satisfaction with contributing to the team’s victory, saying, “I was never concerned about myself. I don't think I’ve ever worried like that in my career. It feels good if I can contribute to the team. As I said, today may have been my day; the next match could be someone else’s day.”