"I'm officially not retired.." Shakib Al Hasan expresses desire to play for Bangladesh again

Shakib Al Hasan played his last international match in October 2024.

Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan has made a big revelation on Moeen Ali’s Beard Before Wicket podcast. Shakib, who has been out of international cricket for more than a year, wants to return to Bangladesh and play a full-fledged series before hanging up his boots.

The 38-year-old has arguably been the biggest figure in Bangladesh’s emergence in international cricket. He was part of a core group that included Tamim Iqbal, Mashrafe Mortaza, Mushfiqur Rahim, and Mahmudullah.

Shakib wants to make a return

“I am officially not retired from all formats,” said the former Bangladesh skipper, in a bold statement. He further added, “This is the first time I’ll be revealing that. My plan is to go back to Bangladesh, play one full series of ODI, Test, and T20, and retire.”

Since the political uprising in Bangladesh that overthrew Sheikh Hasina’s government, Shakib has not returned to his country. He was a member of Sheikh Hasina’s party, Awami League and an MP from his hometown, Magura.

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“Give something back to them”

“I mean, [I can] retire from all formats in a series. So it can start from T20I, ODI and Test, or Test, ODI, T20I. Either way, I’m fine, but I want to play a whole series and retire. That’s what I want,” Shakib revealed.

He wants to play a home series in front of the fans to say goodbye to them one last time.

“I think when a player says something, they try to stick to their words; they normally don’t change it all of a sudden. It doesn’t matter if I play well or not. I might play a bad series after that, if I want to play. But I don’t need to do that. I think this is enough. It’s just a nicer way to say bye to the fans that they supported me always, give something back to them, playing a home series,” he concluded.

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