Wisden rates Shakib as 2nd MVP of 21st century

Bangladeshi all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been rated as the second Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 21st century in ODI cricket by world famous cricket monthly "Wisden", reports UNB.

Shakib, who has been banned for a year, is also ranked sixth in Tests, but did not get a place in the top 20 in T20 format.

Wisden has revealed the list of the most valuable players (MVP) of the modern century in their monthly edition 33, published in July.

In a statement on Saturday, state minister for youth and sports Zahid Ahsan Russell congratulated Shakib for being selected as second most valuable player of the century in ODI cricket by Wisden.

"It's very good news for the countrymen during the deadly COVID-19 situations. It's a very big achievement for us. With this feat, our position in world cricket will further be strengthened and I do hope Shakib will bring more laurel for the country continuing his brilliant form in future," he added.

Wisden has selected the 'Most Valuable Players' (MVP) in a joint study with cricket statistics organisation Cricviz and the MVP selection is decided on the equivalent of how much a player contributed to the match.

Sri Lankan spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan has been named the most valuable player in Tests, former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff has been named the best player in ODIs while Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan got the honour in T20 format.

Apart from Muralitharan, Shakib is followed by India's Rabindra Jadeja, Australia's Steve Smith, Glenn McGrath and South Africa's Shaun Pollock.

The formula invented by Cricviz's data scientist Sam Green, was used to select the MVPs.

The formula calculates how much a player has done better or worse than others in a match for a team.

The average is then added after adding points to all the matches played at the pointed time period.

However, Wisden Cricket Monthly has said that they have not selected the 'best' players, but have found the most influential cricketers of the time.