Picture Credit: Twitter/@BCBtigers
Veteran Bangladesh cricketer Mushfiqur Rahim is set to miss the remainder of Zimbabwe series owing to personal reasons. While he had earlier wished to skip just the T20I leg of the tour, he will now not play a role in the ODI series which is set to commence on July 16. It is further being learnt that the 34-year-old is heading back to Dhaka later on Wednesday.
Notably, Rahim had earlier wished to give the shortest format a skip and even informed the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) of the same. However, the board had initially not approved his request waiting for the wicketkeeper-batter to inform the cricket operations department.
Think he may be tired after playing for so long: Chief selector Minhajul Abedin
"Mushfiqur has requested for a break during the T20Is, but he is available for the Test and ODIs," ESPNcricinfo had earlier quoted Chief Selector Minhajul Abedin. "I think he may be tired after playing for so long, which is why he wants the leave. We will decide once he officially informs the cricket operations department," he had said as per the same media report. Post this though, the board has allowed him to take time off even from the ODI series.
Opts for a break second time since 2020
It should be noted that this is the second time that the loyal Bangladesh cricketer has requested for a break. Earlier, he had skipped the Pakistan tour in 2020, citing concerns over his family's safety. For the unversed, Bangladesh are currently in Zimbabwe and have already won the one-off Test match which saw Mahmudullah Riyad score a match-winning 150* before announcing his retirement from Test cricket.
The Bangla Tigers will now play a three-match ODI series, followed by a T20I arrangement of the same number of matches - all scheduled to be played at Harare.