Dhaka, Jan 8 (IANS): Banglsadesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has returned to the country after spending some quality time with his family in the United States.

The star all-rounder was supposed to return on January 9 but flew back on Wednesday and practised at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Thursday, reports bdnews24.com.

Shakib's sabbatical started after the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), when he attended to some commitments here before flying to the US on December 28.

Shakib's wife Umme Ahmed Shishir had given birth to a daughter, their first child, at a hospital in New York in November last year, during Zimbabwe's limited-overs series against Bangladesh.

He started for the US immediately after getting the news of Shishir's hospitalisation and received the news of his daughter’s birth on the way. He then came back for the BPL.

Shakib was in a lighter mood as he spoke to journalists on Thursday about his daughter, Alaina Hasan Abri, who is about two months old now.

"I had never been too close to children before. But this baby girl was with me, sleeping on my chest. Doing the little things for my daughter felt good in a different way."

Shakib also surprised his wife on her birthday with a tour of New York on a helicopter.

"Travelled a lot, had a blast. The vacation was great."