Shakib Al Hasan vs Ravindra Jadeja - who is the better all-rounder?
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan shone with bat and ball as his side beat England by 50 runs at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram in the third ODI of the three-match series.
After Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat first, the all-rounder scored 75 off 71 balls as the hosts put up 246 on the board. Apart from Shakib, Mushfiqur Rahim (70) and Najmul Hossain Shanto (53) also chipped in with important knocks.
When Bangladesh set out to defend their total, Shakib was the standout performer yet again, claiming 4/35 in his 10 overs. The left-arm spinner dismissed Jason Roy (19), Philip Salt (35), James Vince (38), and Rehan Ahmed (two) as England were cleaned up for 196 in 43.1 overs.
With a 50-run win, Bangladesh averted a 0-3 whitewash in the series, having gone down to the visitors in the first two ODIs. Over the course of his spell, the 35-year-old also became the first Bangladesh player to take 300 ODI wickets.
Along with India’s Ravindra Jadeja, Shakib is considered among the finest all-rounders of the modern generation. In this feature, we try to analyze who is the better overall cricketer.
Overall records of Shakib and Jadeja
Having made his international debut in 2006, Shakib has featured in 65 Tests, 227 ODIs, and 109 T20Is. The Bangladesh cricketer has scored 4367 runs in Tests at an average of 38.64, 6976 in ODIs at an average of 37.70, and 2243 runs in T20Is at a strike rate of 121.76.
On the bowling front, he has claimed 231 wickets in Tests, averaging 31.18. His 300 scalps in ODIs have come at an average of 28.96, while he has picked up 128 scalps in T20Is, averaging 21.21.
Speaking of Jadeja, the 34-year-old made his international debut in 2009 and has so far featured in 63 Tests, 171 ODIs, and 64 T20Is. The southpaw has scored over 2000 runs in both Tests and ODIs, averaging 36.02 and 32.62, respectively. In T20Is, he doesn’t get much chance to bat and has only managed 457 runs at a strike rate of 124.52.
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With the ball, he has 263 Tests wickets at an average of 23.84 and 189 in ODIs, averaging 37.36. Speaking of his T20I numbers, he has picked up 51 wickets at an average of 28.49.
There is really nothing much to pick between the overall stats of the two brilliant all-rounders. Although Shakib has significantly better numbers in white-ball cricket, the fact that Bangladesh play a lot against relatively weaker sides needs to be taken into consideration.
Beyond the numbers - the versatility factor
As is often pointed out by experts, the greatness of a player cannot be gauged by numbers alone. It also depends on how a player performs under pressure situations and on big occasions. A difficult part of this analysis is that Shakib has played in weak squads for the majority of his career.
When he made his debut, it had only been a few years since Bangladesh were handed Test status. They were still finding their feet. While the Asian side are still a relatively weak force in international cricket, they have become a strong outfit at home, especially in white-ball cricket, beating most of the top teams.
In contrast, Jadeja has been aided by a strong Indian side in all three formats. He has formed a lethal combination with off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in Tests, while he is a proven match-winner with both bat and ball in white-ball formats. Over the last three to four years in particular, he has established himself as a key component of the Indian team across all three versions of the game.
Both Shakib and Jadeja are sorely missed when they are unavailable, irrespective of the reason. While the Bangladesh all-rounder was away from the game for a year after he was banned for failing to report corrupt approaches, the team clearly wasn’t the same.
Similarly, India were desperate for Jadeja to return to the team following his recovery from a knee injury. He recently made a comeback and proved his worth right away, winning the Player of the Match award in the first two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 against Australia.
Fielding the clinching factor
It would be a futile exercise to go into detail about Jadeja and Shakib’s stats. Both have delivered a number of exceptional performances with bat and ball over the years, irrespective of the conditions on offer. But if there is one clinching factor that separates the two, it is fielding.
While Shakib is a very good fielder and has taken some sensational catches over the years, he is no match for Jadeja. The latter is head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to the current generation.
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The versatile Indian cricketer has the ability to change the momentum of the match with a breathtaking effort in the field. He has done the same a number of times in his illustrious career. That is what makes him arguably the best all-rounder of the modern era.
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