Surrey narrowly missed a draw by just three minutes in a tense county match against Somerset, despite a brilliant bowling performance from Shakib Al Hasan. After a 13-year absence from county cricket, Shakib made an impactful return by taking a five-wicket haul, although his team eventually lost the match.

On the final day, Surrey needed 221 runs to win but suffered a batting collapse, getting bowled out for 109, just three minutes before the end of play. Shakib, who faced five balls, was dismissed for a duck by Archie Vaughan, the same batter he had dismissed earlier in Somerset's second innings. Other Surrey players who were dismissed for ducks included Ryan Patel, Jordan Clark, Cameron Steel, and Daniel Worrall.

Despite his batting struggles, Shakib shone with the ball, taking five wickets in Somerset's second innings. He claimed the first wicket of the innings by dismissing Archie Vaughan for just three runs. Shakib followed up by sending Tom Abell, James Rew, and captain Lewis Gregory back to the pavilion. By the end of the third day's play, Shakib had bowled 25 overs, conceding 83 runs and taking four wickets. Somerset ended the day with a lead of 190 runs at 194/9.

Somerset extended their lead to 220 runs before getting bowled out for 224 in their second innings. Tom Banton was bowled by Shakib for 46, giving him a total of five wickets in the innings. Earlier in the match, Shakib also had an impressive performance in the first innings, where he took four wickets, including those of Tom Abell, Kasey Aldridge, Craig Overton, and Brett Hutton. He finished with figures of 4/97 from 33.5 overs, making him Surrey's best bowler.

In reply to Somerset's first innings score of 317, Surrey managed 321 runs, with Shakib contributing 12 runs from 24 balls. Had Surrey won the match, Shakib would likely have been named Player of the Match for his remarkable nine-wicket haul across both innings.

Despite the defeat, Shakib's bowling performance is a positive sign for his return to county cricket, and Hannan Sarkar, a member of Bangladesh’s selection committee, believes Shakib is just one good innings away from finding his batting form again.