Shakib Al Hasan was named the sportsperson of the year at the Teer-Prothom Alo Sports Awards 2021. This is the sixth time Shakib has won this prize. He also won the sportsperson of the year prize in the popular category for the first time, receiving the highest number of votes from Prothom Alo readers. The Bangladesh Test and Twenty20 captain had a chat with Prothom Alo shortly after receiving the accolades, where he shared his immediate thoughts.
Q :
You have won the sportsperson of the year award five times before. This is your sixth time winning it, how would you describe the feeling?
(Smiles) Of course, it feels really great. It feels good to win any award. Winning this award for the sixth time is a huge achievement for me. I said this while collecting the award, if the awards function for the year 2019 had been held, most likely, I would’ve won that also. Then this would’ve been my seventh award. That would’ve felt even better. It feels good when your achievements get acknowledged. It’s also a challenge to maintain such consistency.
Q :
You are confident that if the awards had been given out for 2019, you would’ve won it. Why were you doubtful about winning it in 2021?
I thought someone else will get it this time. To be honest, I didn’t even think that I will win it this time. Even five minutes before I went on stage to receive the award, I was saying this to Sumon bhai (Habibul Bashar) who was sitting beside me that whenever a programme like this is held, sports personalities should attend because such programmes are centred on us. Whether we win something or not, is not important.
Q :
You have already won it six times, surely you would like to win it again in the future…
As I’m still performing well, the new year will be another new challenge for me. Staying consistent in the new year will be my biggest challenge. The biggest driving force for me will be, if I could win it six times, why not a seventh? I will definitely try to win it. I hope to win it every year for as long as I continue playing. However, it would be very difficult. There are other sports, there is a lot of competition among the cricketers as well. But no matter how much competition there is, I want to keep winning this award and will continue trying hard.
Q :
You were also named the sportsperson of the year in the popular category, the Prothom Alo readers seem to like you the most. How does that feel?
In this area, I’m always confident (smiles). Whether I perform well or not, I always feel confident that if there is an award determined by reader or supporter’s votes, I will definitely win it, I’m bound to win it. I am indebted to everyone who loves me so much. I get my confidence from them. They inspire me in every moment.
Q :
There are a lot of matches coming up for Bangladesh in 2023, there is also a World Cup. How confident are you about putting forth a performance that can win you another best of the year award?
I want to say this beforehand, I don’t think I will make the list of award winners in the performance category for 2022. But even if I don’t get a chance to get on stage, I will be sitting in the audience section if I’m in the country, Inshallah. Yes, I will definitely try to perform really well to defend our title (smiles). 2023 is a very important year for our cricket. I will try to do something great. That will help me win this award once again, but the main intention behind me wanting to perform well is to contribute to the team. The more I can contribute, naturally, the team’s chances to do well will increase. The others will also have to play well. But if I play well, it will greatly benefit the team.
Q :
Right now, the latest award you have won is the Teer-Prothom Alo sportsperson of the year-2021. Is there any difference between how you felt after winning your first award compared to how you are feeling after winning the latest one?
Every prize evokes the same emotion. Every one of them gives me joy. You definitely noticed that I started to sweat on the stage (smiles). It’s not natural to sweat like this inside an air-conditioned room. You see… I feel nervous and also enjoy it.
*This interview appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ashfaq-Ul-Alam Niloy