Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan bowls a delivery on the fourth day of the second Test cricket match between India and Bangladesh at the Green Park Cricket Stadium in Kanpur on September 30, 2024. — AFP
Retiring former captain Shakib Al Hasan informed local media on Thursday that he would not be returning to Bangladesh due to a 'security concern', potentially missing what he claims will be his final match for his country. Asif Mahmud, the head of the sports ministry, advised the cricket board to discourage Shakib's return due to public outrage. Shakib, a cricket icon, is also a former lawmaker from the government that was overthrown in a revolution in August.
The 37-year-old announced his retirement from international cricket last month but expressed his desire to play one final Test series at home. He was included in the Bangladesh squad to face South Africa, with the first of two Tests scheduled to start on October 21, and was expected to return to Dhaka on Thursday. Shakib is a former lawmaker from the party of the autocratic ex-leader Sheikh Hasina, who escaped to India by helicopter in August. He is among numerous individuals from Hasina's party facing murder investigations for a brutal police crackdown on protesters during the uprising.
'I was supposed to return home... but now I don't think I can,' Shakib told broadcaster bdnews24.com. 'It's a security issue, a matter of my own safety.' Shakib apologized in a Facebook post earlier this month for his silence during the revolution. However, Mahmud, from the interim government's cabinet, stated that 'recent protests indicate it wasn't enough' and advised Shakib not to return to avoid 'unwanted incidents.'
'This decision was made to ensure the safety of players and to safeguard the country's image,' Mahmud said in a statement. Shakib was participating in a domestic Twenty20 cricket competition in Canada when the regime collapsed and has not returned to Bangladesh since. He toured Pakistan and India with the Bangladesh team. The first Test against South Africa in Mirpur, near the capital Dhaka, will be the first international cricket match in Bangladesh since crowds stormed Hasina's palace. Over 700 people were killed in the unrest, according to Bangladesh's health ministry.
The second Test will be held in the port city of Chittagong, also known as Chattogram, starting October 29. Hasina's 15-year rule was marked by widespread human rights violations, including the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of her political opponents. Earlier on Thursday, a court in Bangladesh issued an arrest warrant for Hasina to face charges, including crimes against humanity.
