Shakib Al Hasan, the captain of Bangladesh, will run in the nation’s 12th parliamentary election after the ruling Awami League confirmed his nomination. The elections are set for January 7 and he will be running from his home district, Magura-1.
Currently undergoing recovery, Shakib suffered a finger injury on November 6 during the World Cup play against Sri Lanka. When he will return to the field is still unknown.
Bangladesh will tour New Zealand for six white-ball matches from December 11 to December 31 following their two home Test matches against New Zealand from November 28 to December 10. It is unclear if Shakib will visit New Zealand at the end of his first political campaign, having stated prior to the World Cup that he would not be continuing as the ODI captain but would still be leading the T20I team. Teams have already begun turning their attention to their T20 plans in anticipation of the next T20 World Cup in June 2024. The three T20Is are scheduled to take place from December 27 to December 31.
Shakib leaves Narail and follows Mashrafe Mortaza, the former captain of Bangladesh who was elected as an MP in the last elections. This year, Mashrafe was nominated once more, and although Shakib has long been active in his hometown’s community, he has never truly entered this realm of public life.
Nonetheless, there is a growing convergence between politics and cricket in Bangladesh. Nazmul Hassan, the head of the BCB, has been an MP since 2009, aside from Shakib and Mashrafe. His Kishoreganj constituency once again gave him the nomination. Shafiul Alam Chowdhury, the director of BCB, was also nominated for the Moulvibazar seat. In the upcoming elections, incumbent MP Naimur Rahman, a former captain of Bangladesh, was unable to win the Manikganj seat.
It is also quite uncommon for current international cricket players to go into politics. In the 2010 general elections, Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka stood for public office prior to Shakib and Mashrafe.
