AB de Villiers motivates Shakib to bat at No.3 in World Cup

DHAKA -Shakib Al Hasan’s exceptional performance in 2019 World Cup was vastly inspired by a conversation with South African great AB de Villiers who actually gave him the idea to bat at No. 3 position.

Shakib ended the World Cup by stamping his own authority as he scored 606 runs and claimed 11 wickets, a record that none could do in the cricket’s biggest extravaganza’s history.

His 606 runs, the third highest tally in the World Cup, came in No.3 position which is not for him. Indeed the team management had reservation to allow him batting in No.3. Senior batsman Tamim Iqbal also tried to stop him
batting at No. 3, considering that Shakib needs to take the onus in middle order.

But Shakib was adamant to bat at No.3 while he got the crucial support from captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, which eventually helped him to create the history.

Shakib revealed that the decision to bat at No. 3 came after the conversation with AB de Villiers during the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

“During the BPL game, ahead of the World Cup, I was causally talking with de Villiers. He told me that he always batted at No. 4/5/6 but if he could bat at No. 3, he could contribute more for the team and could make more runs
but for the sake of the team, he had to bat at No.4/5/6,” Shakib told during a conversation with Deutsche Welle.

Shakib added that de Villiers also gave his own logic to bat at No. 3 which satisfied him fully.

“de Villiers said he scored 70/80, playing in middle order. Those runs sometimes worked well for the team and sometimes didn’t work. He said if he could bat at No. 3, he might score 100 /120. That doesn’t mean a century
could always win the team but a No.3 batsman could help the team in many ways. Suppose if a team losses two/three wickets early, the No.3 batsman could take the onus and in this case if he scores big runs, the next batsmen
won’t feel the pressure,” Shakib revealed.

Shakib however said his intention helped him thrive in the No.3 position amid the criticism.“I believe the intention plays a major role in bringing up the success. If the intention is right, you will be successful,” he concluded.BSS