BANGLADESH

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia have sent greetings to Bangladesh's cricket star Shakib Al Hasan on his 26th birthday.

"The prime minister wished Shakib a glorious future and hoped that he would lead Bangladesh's cricket to new heights," Hasina's special assistant (media) Mahbubul Haque Shakil told bdnews24.com on Saturday.

Khaleda's press secretary Maruf Kamal Khan also told bdnews24.com that Khaleda sent a cake and flowers with a greetings card to Shakib.

Party's sports affairs secretary Raihan Amin Talukder took the presents to Shakib's Mirpur residence, he said.

Shakib was born on Mar 24, 1987 in Magura. His debut test match was against India in 2007 while his ODI debut was against Zimbabwe the previous year.

He won the title of 'Man of the Tournament' in the just-concluded Asia Cup by scoring 237 individual runs and claiming six wickets during the tournament.