Shakib Al Hasan announces T20I retirement, hopes to play final Test in Mirpur but cites security concerns | Cricket News
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan announced his T20I retirement on Thursday, ahead of his team’s second Test against India at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.
The veteran cricketer has appeared in every edition of the T20 World Cup since 2007 and ended the 2024 edition as the tournament’s all-time highest wicket-taker with 50 scalps. Speaking to reporters ahead of the second Test, Shakib also laid out his plans for the Test and ODI formats.
The 37-year-old Shakib has not travelled to Bangladesh since the political upheaval of the Sheikh Hasina regime in August. Shakib, a member of former Prime Miner Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League Party, was called out members of the opposition and new dispensation for being absent and mum during the momentous days. Simultaneously, Shakib was also named among 147 people charged for a murder case in Dhaka last month.
The all-rounder has confirmed that he hopes to play his final Test for Bangladesh in Mirpur during the South Africa series. According to the Future Tours Program, the two-match series is slated to begin in Mirpur on October 21. However, if security concerns impede the move, Shakib affirmed that the upcoming Test against India in Kanpur would be his final assignment in whites.
“Going back to Bangladesh is not a concern, but leaving Bangladesh once I go there is dangerous,” Shakib told reporters on Thursday.
Shakib also confirmed that the upcoming Champions Trophy in early 2025 will be his last ODI series for Bangladesh.
Shakib, who made his international debut in 2006, is the only cricketer to achieve the double of 14,000 runs and 700 wickets across formats. Shakib is the third highest wicket-taker in T20Is (149). He is also only one of two crickets to record more than 7000 runs and 300 wickets in ODIs.
