Bangladesh Cricket Board plans to give Mashrafe a fitting farewell at home ground

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has planned to give Mashrafe Bin Mortaza a grand farewell, acknowledging his contribution to the country’s cricket.

The BCB president Nazmul Hassan revealed the plan amid the widespread retirement discussion of the ODI captain, who is yet to make it clear when he will walk into the sunset.

“We want to give him a nice farewell, considering the fact that he has immense contribution for our cricket,” Nazmul Hassan told the reporters in London, while watching the match between the parliamentary team of Bangladesh and Pakistan.

The first edition of Inter-Parliamentary Cricket World Cup kicked off on July 9 as politicians from different countries locked horns on a different turf in London amid the drumbeat of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup.

Mashrafe, as a parliamentarian was believed to take part in this tournament but his physical exhaustion was key in not playing the tournament.

“We want to make his farewell as beautiful as we can to do. I think we should give him farewell in our country. I have told him this the last time when I talked to him. We want to make it memorable,” Nazmul added.

However Mashrafe’s retirement issue gained the momentum after his rare failure in the World Cup in which he took just one wicket from eight games, averaging 361, his worst for any tournament. He conceded 6.44 runs per over.

Rumours were rife that the most successful captain of the country’s cricket history would bid adieu to the cricket after Bangladesh’s last match against Pakistan in this World Cup.

Bangladesh lost the match by 94 runs but Mashrafe remained tightlipped about his retirement issue, saying that he would take the decision after returning to the home.

But despite Mashrafe’s ordinary performance, the BCB president hasn’t seen any replacement of the player of his caliber right at the moment.

“As a player he has no alternative. As captain there is no question that we can get someone like him again,” Nazmul said.

“I always say we haven’t any replacement for two players-Shakib Al Hasan and Mashrafe Bin Mortaza.”

“They are irreplaceable. We won’t get any player like Shakib Al Hasan and we won’t get a captain like Mashrafe. Apart from them, we will have the replacement of other players.”

Bangladesh will play a three-match ODI series in Sri Lanka later this month. And there is no ODI series scheduled in this year in Bangladesh. Mashrafe is currently playing just ODI format of cricket.

But BCB president didn’t make it clear how and when they will arrange a farewell series for the country’s most successful captain.

Source: bss