Tamim Iqbal has decided to “wait till January” to decide whether or not to continue playing cricket internationally.
During a Monday press conference, Tamim stated, “I felt that there should be a decision about my international future after the World Cup.” “I have never let hesitation get in the way of my work. I’ve always been really honest and upfront about every choice I’ve made in my life. It was time for us to meet, as I hadn’t been in the nation for a while [with BCB president Nazmul Hassan].
“We had to postpone the meeting yesterday as well, so we convened it today. It’s actually not a good idea to do all of this today. Tomorrow is the start of the Test match [against New Zealand]. I apologize for doing this the day before the game; since we had to hold the meeting today, a statement would undoubtedly be made afterward. It is crucial that this has no bearing on the game for both the Bangladeshi team and me.”
After seeing Bangladesh’s prime leader Sheikh Hasina the next day, Tamim, who had declared his retirement from international cricket in July of last year, changed his mind. He also gave up his position as ODI captain a month later. In September, Tamim participated in two of the three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) against New Zealand, despite criticism later on from his successor Shakib Al Hasan for having given up the captaincy at that point. Tamim has not yet answered Shakib.
Tamim stated that he was withholding the news regarding his future at Nazmul’s request and that he will be playing competitive cricket again in January of the following year in the Bangladesh Premier League.
“I don’t want to wait a couple more months to resolve things. I don’t want to prolong it needlessly,” he remarked. “After extensive deliberation with the board and the president, I would like to honor their choice and bide my time until January. I could have explained my strategy to you today, but let me play in the BPL first. We’ll talk about it again later.”
Major talks between Nazmul and Tamim, on the other hand, will only take place until the national elections in January, for which Nazmul, along with Shakib Al Hasan and Mashrafe Mortaza, received a ticket from his home district.
“There wasn’t enough time [to discuss matters with Tamim],” Nazmul stated. “He made some statements. However, I didn’t have enough time for him when he arrived. In one month, I have the elections. I am in my constituency most of the time. After the elections, I’ll listen to him and talk to a few more people, I told him. I’d like to know the location of the issue. I wish to delve deeper into it.”
