Bangladesh cricketer Shakib Al Hasan, has been absent for close to two years from Bangladesh’s team and has said that he is looking for solutions to make a return to the country and the team for one final stint.
Shakib, one of Bangladesh’s most prominent cricketers, who turned to politics, has not returned to Bangladesh after Sheikh Hasina’s resignation and political exile to India in 2024. Hasan, a member of the Awami League, now hopes to be a part of the national team again.
Hasan spoke to Sportstar and said that the interim government could have handled the incidents following Mustafizur Rahman’s ouster from the IPL better, and that the sentiments of people were misled when Bangladesh decided to back out of the T20 World Cup.
“In the end, it was the players who suffered — and that’s simply not acceptable. It was a very poor decision by the interim government. At the same time, the Bangladesh Cricket Board also went along with it. There wasn’t enough effort to push back or convince the authorities that the team should participate in the tournament regardless. Instead, multiple conditions were put in place. And let’s be honest, you can’t really find solutions when you start with too many conditions,” said Shakib to Sportstar.
“Look, the Indian Premier League is a domestic tournament run by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, and ultimately, it’s their call on who they pick or leave out. That said, I do feel the Mustafizur Rahman situation could have been handled much better, ideally through back-channel discussions involving the BCB and the franchise,” he added.
Shakib then said that the incident should not have led to the BCB and BCCI’s ties straining.
“But even then, one incident shouldn’t derail everything. If there were issues between the BCB and the BCCI, they should have been resolved internally — not by escalating matters to the point of straining ties with the International Cricket Council (ICC). That, in my view, was a serious misstep,” said Shakib.
He then added, “It wasn’t the right approach. I felt that those in power capitalised on public sentiment, amplified it, and ended up taking a decision that wasn’t in the best interest of the game. It was a clear blunder.”
