NEWS
Follow UsThe controversy surrounding Tamim Iqbal's axe from Bangladesh's World Cup squad has shown no signs of dying down. A day after Tamim accused the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) of creating one roadblock after another, which included a senior board member asking him to bat in the middle-order, skipper Shakib Al Hasan has hit back.
Shakib believes if Tamim is thinking along those lines and not thinking about the team, he is childish and not a team man. "I am sure someone who is authorized had said this [to Tamim]," Shakib told Dhaka-based TV channel T-Sports on Wednesday (September 27).
"I am sure whoever has said it, he thought of the team. A lot of things go into building a combination for a match. So if someone has said this to him, was it wrong? Or we can't make such a proposal? I am just going to tell someone that you can do whatever you want. Is the team first or the individual?"
In a scathing attack, Shakib went on to question Tamim's credibility as a team man.
"Someone like Rohit Sharma built his career from No. 7 to opener, scored 10,000-plus runs. If he sometimes bats at No. 3 or 4, would it be a big problem? It is totally childish. It is my bat, I will play. No one else can play. A player should bat at any position for the team. Team first," Shakib said.
"It doesn't make any difference if you have made 100 or 200, and the team loses. What can you do with personal achievement? You want to make a name for yourself?
"You are not thinking about the team at all. People don't understand these things. Why was the proposal given to him? It was for the team. What is wrong in that?
"You are a team man when you agree to such a proposal. Unless you are thinking along those lines, you are not a team man. You are playing for individual records, success, fame, and name. Not for the team."
Tamim is believed to be carrying a back injury that he sustained in July in the series against Afghanistan, which saw him miss the Asia Cup and also the final match of his home comeback series against New Zealand. Shakib had previously insisted that he did not fancy carrying anyone who was less than 100% into the World Cup.
"I didn't discuss the subject with the particular player, medical team or selector. It is definitely the board's decision. People might doubt my capability or capacity but someone like MS Dhoni, who has won everything and has the knowledge and sense, once said that the unfit player who is playing is cheating his team and country. I think we should accept it, and not just Tamim but every player [that you have to be fully fit when playing for the team or country]."
Teams like New Zealand, too are managing without their star batter and skipper Kane Williamson for a couple of games after he tore his ACL ligament earlier this year. However, for Shakib, the uncertainty over Tamim's participation is a cause for concern.
"Kane Williamson won't play the first two matches, but then he will start playing," Shakib said.
"If I knew something like this, I wouldn't have any problems. But if I know that there's uncertainty about him playing the seventh or the third, or the first game, or that I will only know in the morning of the game, it will be difficult for me to select the team. I don't think we need such a player."
There were reports suggesting that Tamim would be fit to play five matches in the World Cup, but the opener shot down these rumours. "I certainly heard that he will play selectively," Shakib said.
"A journalist can't really tell you that he will come to the office an hour before he wants to come to office. If you ask me personally, if I was the company CEO, I won't keep that employee. Although I never had any discussion about this matter."
Shakib was also not too pleased when Tamim resigned as ODI captain just a couple of months before the World Cup, thereby not allowing a new leader to have some time to establish himself.
"I have often heard in the dressing room that he is leaving the captaincy. Even a player once told him 'bhai, leave it early so that the new captain gets a bit of time'. Exactly that's what happened. The one who came in didn't get the time. Each and everyone knew, including the selectors and board officials. Papon bhai [BCB president Nazmul Hassan] certainly knew about it," Shakib said.
"I don't know why he didn't leave it [earlier]. He can tell you. It is like, your commander takes you to war but [Shakib mimicking a soldier] after he has got you ready, the commander isn't telling you to fire or retreat. Where will you go? We were in this situation in the last two matches against Afghanistan [in July].
"The captain wouldn't have changed ahead of the Asia Cup and the World Cup unless he himself announced that he was resigning or retiring. It would have happened 18 months ago, when everyone knew what was about to happen."
Bangladesh kickstart their World Cup campaign against Afghanistan on October 7 in Dharamsala. They will, however, take on Sri Lanka (September 29) and England (October 2) in Guwahati in their official warm-up games ahead of the marquee event.
