Shakib spurred on to record-breaking feat by Wellington's PA system

Shakib spurred on to record-breaking feat by Wellington's PA system

Shakib Al Hasan, now the holder of the highest Test score for Bangladesh, set records tumbling in Wellington when he smashed a superb 217 in the first Test against New Zealand. The left-hander was also involved in a marathon 359-run stand with his captain Mushfiqur Rahim and, by stumps, had put the visitors in a commanding position at 542 for 7.

Speaking at the end of the day, an elated Shakib Al Hasan said the announcements on the PA system every time he, along with Rahim, surpassed a record spurred the pair on to try and make even bigger scores. The drive to convert their starts into massive contributions made the difference as Rahim and Shakib sent New Zealand on a leatherhunt on Day 2.

"It was great to hear about all the records we were breaking," Shakib Al Hasan said. "It inspired us to make the partnership bigger. I thought Tamim's score was 214 not 206; when I ran that single, I saw Tamim was clapping and I thought, oh, this is the highest score."

Shakib added that the Bangladesh's ploy to play as much as possible on the front foot helped the side counter the New Zealand pacers.

"We follow the rule of always pressing forward to a short ball. It is not easy when you have one bouncer after the other being aimed at you; you go backwards automatically. [But] this mindset makes it easier to play bouncers," he said.

Shakib was batting in such a zone that even Tim Southee's wild throw, that hit the left-hander on the ankle, didn't distract him. He dropped to the ground in pain, but stood up soon after and played an epic knock.

"That happens in cricket. No one does it on purpose. There's nothing to say about that," Shakib said at the end of Day 2. "Yesterday, when [Santner] dropped my catch, I told my wife that maybe I can go on to get a good score, since big players make use of these chances."

Shakib not only made sure of that and like big players do, he made the most of his chance. He went on to ensure he slammed one of the greatest knocks in Bangladesh's cricket history.