SPORTS DESK:

Razzak on Sehwag’s judgement over Shakib’s form

National selector Abdur Razzak said on Tuesday that they don’t need to pay heed to former Indian opener Virender Sehwag’s remarks after the latter insisted that Shakib Al Hasan should retire from T20 cricket following his lean patch in the shortest format.

Sehwag was critical about Shakib’s performance after he failed to deliver both with the bat and ball against South Africa in New York.

Shakib bowled only one over giving away six runs while he failed to shine with the bat making only three runs before giving away his wicket against a short ball of Anrich Nortje.

The southpaw made only eight runs in the first game against Sri Lanka while he could not complete his four overs in that game as well.

“If you are picked in the World Cup squad for your experience, show the worth of it…You are not Adam Gilchrist or Mathew Hayden. You are a Bangladeshi player…Hook, pulls are not your strength. You play according to your strength, at least to stay in the middle” said Sehwag in a show hosted by Cricbuzz following the game.

“Back in the last World Cup, I thought he should not be picked for the T20 format. Time for retirement came a long time ago. You are such a senior player, you were captain of this team, so you should be ashamed of your stat. You should announce yourself that enough is enough, I’m retiring from this format,” he added.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Razzak insisted that there is no need to take Sehwag’s word seriously while added that Shakib should be given some respect for his contribution.

“Sehwag can make funny comments and we don’t need to react strongly to his words, nor should we take them as absolute truth,” said Razzak during a show hosted by a news portal.

“It’s easy to make a comment. Once you say it, it’s out there. Shakib has been the number one cricketer for 15 years. He might not perform in one or two matches, and suddenly, we start criticizing him. I don’t think that’s fair,” he said.

“Everything has an end. When the time will come, he will retire. That’s normal. There’s no need to create unnecessary debates.

“A little more respect is warranted, especially for someone who has served the nation for so many years. He may have had an off day but that doesn’t justify harsh comments. It’s not right,” he concluded.