C T Online Desk: Shakib Al Hasan and Rohit Sharma are the only two players to have featured in each edition of the ICC T20 World Cup so far and they will be up for the challenge again when the ninth edition of the blockbuster tournament starts on 2 June.
Both of them had memorable starts in the tournament, giving an early glimpse of their unmistakable talent in South Africa.
Rohit’s first innings came in a crunch group clash in 2007 against South Africa in Durban, where his maiden T20I fifty ensured India’s spot in the semifinals of the tournament.
Shakib, meanwhile, played a massive role in Bangladesh’s stunning win over West Indies in Johannesburg.
A 20-year-old Shakib ran through the West Indies middle-order to finish with figures of 4-34.
Shakib finished with six wickets in the tournament while Rohit went on to win the competition for India.
Since that tournament, both the stalwarts featured in all T20 World Cups and demonstrated some memorable performances over the years.
Shakib is currently the leading wicket-taker in tournament history with 47 wickets in 36 matches while the southpaw also scored 742 runs at a strike-rate of 122.44.
Meanwhile, Rohit is the fourth leading run-getter in tournament history with 963 runs in 39 matches at an average of 34.39.
Both players will probably play their final T20 World Cup this year and so, they will be eager to provide their best performance on the field in order to finish their long journey on a high note.
