Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hasan on Monday (March 7) questioned Shakib Al Hasan’s commitment to the national team. Shakib Al Hasan had said that he is mentally and physically exhausted and is not ready to play in the upcoming tour of South Africa. Najmul Hasan even told Shakib that he was mentally disturbed.
Responding to the same, the BCB president told Cricbuzz that he was surprised by Shakib’s request, as the former Bangladesh captain had “promised” to play against South Africa. Notably, the Indian Premier League (IPL) planned to skip the two-match Test series in South Africa between 2022. Prior to that he was set to feature in the three-match ODI series.
“Would he (Shakib) have said the same thing if he was selected in the IPL? Would he have said that he is mentally exhausted? Please let us know if he is not ready to play, but if he informs us at the last minute it becomes difficult. This becomes a problem. We had planned for South Africa keeping that in mind. Now when he says something like this it hinders our plan.
Najmul said he was not sure Shakib Why is he not enjoying the game, but he indicated that the veteran cricketer is mentally disturbed. He said, ‘I think he is mentally disturbed. Why wouldn’t he enjoy playing against Afghanistan, that too when we beat them. If a cricketer is not enjoying the success of his team, then it is a big problem.
Najmul Hasan told ‘ESPN Cricinfo’, ‘It is quite logical to think that if his mental and physical condition was bad, he would IPL Auction does not give his name to, but he did give his name. Does it mean that even if he got selected in the IPL, he would have said the same thing. If he doesn’t want to play for Bangladesh then we can’t do anything.
He said, ‘But he can’t constantly say that I want to play or I don’t want to play. We tend to be gentle with those we love, but they also have to be professional. Otherwise we will have to take such decisions which will not be liked by anyone.