Shakib Al Hasan, who has served Bangladesh cricket for a little less than two decades, may not be able to fulfil his desire of ending his Test career against South Africa in Mirpur after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced that they cannot guarantee him security on his return.
Shakib, who is currently a part of the Bangladesh side playing India in the second Test, could therefore end his glorious Test career in Kanpur. On Thursday, the veteran all-rounder expressed his desire to play his final Test at his home ground in Mirpur next month when South Africa tours Bangladesh for a two-Test series.
“I have told (BCB president) Faruque bhai and the selectors. If there’s a chance and if I can play, my last Test will be in Mirpur. The board is trying to ensure that I can play and feel safe, at the same time that I can leave the country without a hitch,” Shakib said in the pre-match conference on Thursday.
However, BCB president Faruque Ahmed has left it on the star all-rounder to decide on his future as the national cricket board cannot guarantee him security. This is despite the fact the BCB officials earlier insisted that the ace all-rounder will not face any trouble coming to Bangladesh, and feature in the Test series against South Africa.
“We don’t have it (Shakib’s security) in our hand. The security needs to come from the government and he will have to take his own decision. We cannot say anything about his security. We don’t have the ability to provide security to any individual,” Faruque said at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka.
“I am neither an agency nor police or the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). The security issue needs to be cleared by the government because from the board we cannot say anything.”
“Shakib is going through a tough time personally so we cannot say much from our side. Like him even I think if he can play his last Test from here, there cannot be anything better than that but his security issues need to be assured by the higher authorities. He is going through a tough time. He felt this is the right time for him to play his last Test and we have shown respect to his decision,” Faruque further said.
Shakib, who was a member of parliament of Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League, against whom the protests were directed, was named as an accused in a murder case by the Adabor police station during the unrest that led to the fall of the government, although the BCB allowed him to continue playing for the national team until he was proven guilty. The board had also assured that Shakib wouldn’t face any trouble if he were to return to Bangladesh to play.