Shakib's career turned in 2014

Shakib Al Hasan learned how to navigate the roads of Bangladesh in 2014, a year marked by a ban that transformed him into a different Shakib. Prior to this, Shakib's thoughts revolved solely around cricket. However, 2014 became a turning point in his career. Faced with immense disappointment, Shakib regarded this period as the worst time of his life. Yet, through unparalleled performances, he established himself as one of the greatest modern cricketers.

In July 2014, Bangladesh’s all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was banned for six months from all forms of domestic and international cricket due to misconduct and breach of discipline. Additionally, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced that he would not be issued a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to play in any tournaments outside the country for the next year and a half. However, following an appeal, the cricket board decided to reduce his punishment. Earlier that same year, Shakib was banned for three matches for making obscene gestures in the dressing room during a series against Sri Lanka.

Shakib described the sorrowful and painful time of 2014 on Bongo BD's show 'Shakib Al Hasan, World Cup Special':

“If you talk about the lessons learned from that ban in 2014, I learned how to navigate life in Bangladesh from then on. Before that, my focus was straightforward – this is my goal, and if I follow this path, I will reach it. But after that, I understood that nothing is straightforward here. Before that, I had no other focus except cricket. After that, I started planning gradually. Until then, I knew nothing but cricket.”

“What was frustrating for me, and I remember this now, is that I couldn’t play. That was the biggest frustration. It was the first really bad time in my life. The first week was horrible. After that, things gradually started getting better. Then I tried my best to figure out how to make a comeback and change decisions... and once the change happened, I started playing again.”