In this photograph taken on December 27, 2023, Shakib Al Hasan (R), national cricket team captain and election candidate of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League speaks with the media before the start of his campaign ahead of the 2024 general elections, in Magura. File
| Photo Credit: AFP
Bangladesh Star cricketer Shakib Al Hasan, currently captain of the one-day team, is contesting from his hometown constituency, Magura, for the incumbent Awami League (AL) party, Al Jazeera reported on Tuesday.
In Magura, a town in southwest Bangladesh, about 168km (104 miles) from capital Dhaka, more than a thousand people are gathered outside a circular-shaped auditorium.
The Star cricketer on Tuesday during a campaign event in Magura, arrived in an SUV, acknowledged the crowd like a seasoned politician, and quickly went inside the auditorium where several people were waiting for him as he appeared for an interview with a popular YouTuber and talk show host, Rafsan Sabab.
The cricketer who came for an election event, which was a part of his PR campaign, received a rousing welcome as people waited for him for a long time. In the interview, Shabab asked the cricketer, “Every district of Bangladesh has its own speciality, be it food, garment or a monument. Here in Magura, when I ask anyone about its speciality, they unanimously say, Shakib Al Hasan.” “Yes, I would have said the same,” Hasan wryly replied.
Hasan, currently the captain of Bangladesh’s one-day team, is ranked the number one all-rounder by the International Cricket Council in two of the three formats of the game simultaneously — one-day internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 — and is ranked third in Test matches.
Shakib Al Hasan is contesting the election from Magura-1 with the Awami League’s Boat symbol as a first-time MP hopeful.
Moreover, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has told Shakib Al Hasan, star cricketer and the Awami League-nominated candidate for Magura-1, to “hit a six” in the 12th national election on January 7, Dhaka Tribune reported. “You do not need to give a speech. You can hit a six, and you can take wickets with the ball. Just hit a six again in the election,” the Prime Minister said to the ace allrounder, calling him a gem.
Sheikh Hasina, chief of the ruling Awami League, was addressing an election rally at the Government Rajendra College ground in Faridpur on Tuesday.