Bangladesh all-rounder Mahmudullah has made a sudden decision to retire from Test cricket after the ongoing match against Zimbabwe in Harare.
Mahmudullah Retires from Test Cricket
Like Sanath Jayasuriya, Kevin Pietersen, Shoaib Malik, Steve Smith, and many more, Mahmudullah started his career as a bowler and then converted into a batsman who could bowl handy off-breaks.
He became the first Bangladeshi World Cup centurion when he scored 103 against England at the Adelaide Oval that helped his team reach the knockout stage for the first time.
According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, Mahmudullah made the announcement shortly after the end of the 3rd day’s play of the ongoing one-off Test against Zimbabwe.
BCB president Nazmul Hassan feels that the decision from the all-rounder might impact the team negatively during the middle of the game. Hassan said Mahmudullah’s decision was “unusual” since the match isn’t over yet.
“I have not been informed officially but someone called me on the phone and said he doesn’t want to play Tests anymore,” Hassan told the Bengali daily Prothom Alo as reported ESPNcricinfo.
“Apparently, he told the dressing room. I think it is highly unusual since the match isn’t even over. I think he did it from emotion. Such an announcement will have a negative impact on the team. It is unacceptable. I have no problem if someone doesn’t want to play, but there is no need to create a mess in the middle of a series,” he added.
The ongoing one-off Test is Mahmudullah’s 50th match in the longest format of the game. The all-rounder hit a gutsy ton in Bangladesh’s first innings to rescue visitors from a precarious position.
Mahmudullah Debut Match
| Test Match | |
| Debut | West Indies vs Bangladesh at Kingstown – July 09 – 13, 2009 |
| Last Played | Pakistan vs Bangladesh at Rawalpindi – February 07 – 10, 2020 |
| ODI Match | |
| Debut | Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh at Colombo (RPS) – July 25, 2007 |
| Last Played | Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka at Dhaka – May 28, 2021 |
| T20I Match | |
| Debut | Kenya vs Bangladesh at Nairobi (Gym) – September 01, 2007 |
| Last Played | New Zealand vs Bangladesh at Napier – March 30, 2021 |
Mahmudullah Batting Stats
| M | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100 | 200 | 50 | 4s | 6s | |
| Test | 49 | 2764 | 146 | 31.41 | 5178 | 53.38 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 321 | 23 |
| ODI | 197 | 4410 | 128 | 35 | 5715 | 77.17 | 3 | 0 | 25 | 335 | 69 |
| T20I | 89 | 1506 | 64 | 23.9 | 1223 | 123.14 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 122 | 48 |
Mahmudullah Bowling Stats
| M | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Econ | Avg | SR | 5W | 10W | |
| Test | 49 | 1949 | 43 | 5/51 | 8/110 | 3.44 | 45.33 | 79.05 | 1 | 0 |
| ODI | 197 | 3574 | 76 | 3/4 | 3/4 | 5.17 | 47.03 | 54.54 | 0 | 0 |
| T20I | 89 | 864 | 31 | 3/18 | 3/18 | 7.29 | 27.87 | 22.94 | 0 | 0 |
