Shakib on the verge of unique milestone

Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan is just two wickets away from becoming the only man in world cricket to be his country's most successful bowler in all three forms of the game.

Al Hasan heads into Bangladesh's historic three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, starting on Sunday, with 206 career wickets to his name, trailing fellow left-armer Abdur Razzak on 207.

Already Bangladesh's most prolific wicket-taker in Tests (147 wickets) and T20 internationals (65 wickets), it seems a foregone conclusion the allrounder will surpass Razzak in the coming week.

But his status as Bangladesh's leading ODI bowler could be under threat by his own skipper, paceman Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, who heads into the series against Afghanistan on 203 career wickets, just three behind Shakib.

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Razzak, who last represented his country more than two years ago, backed 29-year-old Shakib to break a multitude of records before his career comes to an end.

"I won’t say or I can’t say how many wickets he would take before retiring from the cricket but he stands on a good chance to break several records," Razzak told The Independent.

"His dedication and hunger makes him absolute favourite to make so many records for Bangladesh.

"I believe he is going to set such a benchmark which would be tough to emulate. The rate at which he is progressing is unbelievable. He is quite a genius and Bangladesh is lucky to have a player like him."

Image Id: 56223130862C4E34BEF1C386D2D0C27E Image Caption: Shakib (left) and Razzak in 2014 // Getty Images

The late introduction of T20 cricket into international cricket accounts for the fact that, currently, no bowler leads the way for his country in all three formats.

However, seven of the nine other Test-playing nations has one bowler on top of the pile in Test and ODI cricket; England's Jimmy Anderson, India's Anil Kumble, Pakistan's Wasim Akram, South Africa's Shaun Pollock, Sri Lanka's Muthiah Muralidaran and Zimbabwe's Heath Streak are their country's most prolific bowlers in Test and ODIs.

Australia (Shane Warne in Tests, Glenn McGrath in ODIs, Shane Watson in T20s) and New Zealand (Sir Richard Hadlee in Tests, Daniel Vettori in ODIs, Nathan McCullum in T20s) have different bowlers topping their respective lists across all forms.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh named uncapped batsman Mosaddek Hossain and recalled bowler Shafiul Islam for the series against Afghanistan, the first ever bilateral contest between the two nations.

The selectors also dropped paceman Al-Amin Hossain in a revamped 13-man squad for the first two of three matches at Dhaka's Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.

"We thought Shafiul would be a better option as he bowled fantastically well in recent training sessions," chief selector Minhajul Abedin told a press conference in Dhaka.

"Our management also preferred Shafiul ahead of Al-Amin, who is lagging behind in terms of fitness and fielding."

Paceman Rubel Hossain was also recalled to the side after an injury-plagued season, as was left-arm spinner Taijul Islam having last played an ODI against New Zealand in the World Cup last year.

Paceman Taskin Ahmed will join the squad after the ICC lifted the bowling ban placed on him.

Taskin received the sanction following the World Twenty20 in India earlier this year where umpires deemed he had an illegal bowling action. He underwent a reassessment of his action in Australia this month and, along with teammate Arafat Sunny, has had his action approved by the ICC.

Bangladesh ODI Squad
Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mosaddek Hossain, Nasir Hossain, Taijul Islam, Shafiul Islam and Rubel Hossain.

Most wickets for each country

Australia
Tests - Shane Warne (708)
ODIs - Glenn McGrath (381)
T20s - Shane Watson (48)

Bangladesh
Tests - Shakib Al Hasan (147)
ODIs - Abdur Razzaq (207)
T20s - Shakib Al Hasan (65)

England
Tests - Jimmy Anderson (463)
ODIs - Jimmy Anderson (269)
T20s - Stuart Broad (65)

India
Tests - Anil Kumble (619)
ODIs - Anil Kumble (337)
T20s - Ravichandran Ashwin (52)

New Zealand
Tests - Richard Hadlee (431)
ODIs - Daniel Vettori (305)
T20s - Nathan McCullum (58)

Pakistan
Tests - Wasim Akram (414)
ODIs - Wasim Akram (502)
T20s - Shahid Afridi (97)

South Africa
Tests - Shaun Pollock (421)
ODIs - Shaun Pollock (393)
T20s - Dale Steyn (58)

Sri Lanka
Tests - Muthiah Muralidaran (800)
ODIs - Muthiah Muralidaran (534)
T20s - Lasith Malinga (78)

West Indies
Tests - Courtney Walsh (519)
ODIs - Courtney Walsh (227)
T20s - Dwayne Bravo (51)

Zimbabwe
Tests - Heath Streak (216)
ODIs - Heath Streak (239)
T20s - Graeme Cremer (33)