The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president, Nazmul Hasan, expressed his disappointment and surprise at Tamim Iqbal’s sudden retirement decision and stated that the board hopes for his return to international cricket. Tamim, who was expected to lead the side at the upcoming ODI World Cup in India, announced his retirement after the opening ODI of the series against Afghanistan, just three months before the mega event.
Nazmul convened an emergency meeting with the board directors and later informed the media that the board expected Tamim to reconsider his decision as he had not retired “officially.”
The president expressed his confusion over the abrupt announcement, highlighting that there had been regular communication between the board and Tamim. He mentioned discussions with Tamim about the squad, and the player had expressed his commitment to playing until the next Champions Trophy and had talked about his World Cup captaincy with the board.
“The reason why we sat today is that suddenly we have seen that Tamim announced in the media that he retired. It was unexpected for us because we had regular communication, and he was the ODI skipper; even three days back, we spoke with him about the squad. Even today, I have spoken with him,” Nazmul told reporters following the meeting.
The BCB president expressed his disappointment and emphasized that a player of Tamim’s calibre should not make hasty and emotional decisions. Nazmul tried to contact Tamim but was unable to reach him, and he sent a message to Tamim’s brother and manager, Nafees Iqbal, requesting Tamim to lead the side in the ongoing series against Afghanistan and later discuss the matter further.
“I did not know that this kind of decision could come. I spoke with him about his future, and he said he would play till the next Champions Trophy later; he spoke about World Cup captaincy with Jalal Bhai (BCB cricket operation chairman), and I told him he is the captain. As the World Cup is close, there were no talks about the change of captaincy, and from a player like him, when such things (announcement of sudden retirement) come, it is very unfortunate,” Nazmul said.
Nazmul acknowledged that it would not be appropriate for a captain to retire in the middle of a tournament, and the board wanted to give Tamim a proper farewell. However, if Tamim remains firm on his decision, the board will have no choice but to respect it.
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The president clarified that Tamim remains the ODI captain in his eyes, and Litton Das will lead the team in Tamim’s absence for the remaining two ODIs against Afghanistan.
Addressing allegations that his earlier remarks about Tamim playing despite not being fully fit played a role in Tamim’s decision, Nazmul brushed them aside, stating that whatever they heard from Tamim was conveyed through the media, and he had not officially resigned to the board.
The BCB president’s statements reflect the board’s disappointment and hope for Tamim Iqbal to reconsider his retirement decision and continue to contribute to Bangladesh cricket. The situation remains uncertain, and the board awaits further communication from Tamim.
