Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan reverses retirement:Says- ‘I’ll bid farewell after playing a home series’; plans to retire from all formats simultaneously

Bangladesh’s star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has clearly stated on Moeen Ali’s podcast ‘Beard Before Wicket’ that he has not yet officially retired from all three formats (Test, ODI, and T20I). This is the first time he has spoken openly about it. Shakib said, ‘I have not retired from all formats yet. My plan is to return to Bangladesh, play a full home series (T20I, ODI, and Test), and then retire from all three formats simultaneously. Whether the series starts with T20I or Test, it doesn’t matter to me. I just want to play a full series and bid farewell to the fans.’ Hope to return to Bangladesh Shakib has not returned to Bangladesh since May 2024. After the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5, 2024, questions were raised about his safety. He was a Member of Parliament from the Awami League and his name came up in an alleged murder case. At that time, he was not in the country. Still, he played Test series in Pakistan and India. The Kanpur Test against India (September 2024) is still his last international match. On the question of returning to Bangladesh, Shakib said, ‘I am very hopeful that I will return. That’s why I am currently playing in different T20 leagues. I am sure it will happen.’ He also said that there would be no pressure of results in the home series. He just wants to thank those fans who have supported him for years. A player should stick to his promise. It doesn’t matter whether I play well or not. I just want to give something back to the fans by playing on home ground.’ Had announced retirement during India tour last year Shakib had announced his retirement from Test and T20 last year, before the second Test match played between Bangladesh and India in Kanpur, which took place between September 27 and November 1. He had said that the match he played in the World Cup T20 should now be considered his last match. Meanwhile, he had said that the upcoming Champions Trophy in early 2025 would be his last ODI for Bangladesh. However, Shakib Al Hasan was not included in the team for the Champions Trophy. Even before the team announcement, he was barred from bowling in major matches due to a flaw found in his bowling action. In such a situation, the match played against Sri Lanka in Delhi in the 2023 ODI World Cup was considered his last ODI match. Shakib Al Hasan said – Deliberately bowled with an illegal action Shakib revealed that when his bowling action was reported while playing county cricket for Surrey in 2024 and the ECB banned him from bowling in England, he was deliberately using a slightly incorrect action at that time because he was very tired. He said, ‘I had bowled more than 70 overs in a four-day match. In my entire career, I had never bowled so many overs even in a Test match.’ Immediately after playing two Tests in Pakistan, I arrived in Taunton to play against Somerset. I was completely exhausted. I thought the umpire would give a warning first, but according to the rules, he had the authority. I didn’t complain.” After failing the test, Shakib watched his video, understood the mistake, and corrected his action after a few weeks of practice. Surrey Club also helped him a lot. He said, ‘Then I felt it was very easy to fix it.’