Bangladesh's Mushfiqur Rahim to quit keeping in longer format of game

Bangladesh's wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim has decided to give up keeping the gloves in the longer format of the game in order to extend his career and reduce his workload. Mushfiqur Rahim has been a constant member of the Bangladesh squad irrespective of the format of the game. Playing since his Test debut in 2005, Mushfiqur Rahim has been an integral part of the Bangladesh line-up and provides the team strength behind the wickets. Bangladesh is scheduled to tour India starting from November 3 for three T20s followed by two Tests. 

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Mushfiqur Rahim to give up wicketkeeping in Tests

The 32-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman announced his decision after he consulted with the team's head coach Russell Domingo before making his move. Expressing his will to play across various formats of the game including the BPL, DPL and international cricket, Mushfiqur Rahim said that he was not interested in keeping for the longer formats of the game and said that he wanted to focus on lessening his workload and reducing the time taken for him to recover from an injury. Earlier, Mushfiqur Rahim had refused to give up his duties as a wicketkeeper despite the team management's persistence. Mushfiqur Rahim defended his decision to quit wicketkeeping and said that he wanted to focus on improving his batting. Mushfiqur Rahim also stated occasions where he had smashed double centuries and had some memorable moments behind the stumps in the same match and said that everyone couldn't be Shakib-al-Hasan to give 100% with both the bat and the ball. 

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Shakib might face legal action

Bangladesh's domestic cricketers might be reaping benefits from the players' protest but their national captain Shakib al Hasan has been caught off-guard, with the board mulling legal action for violation of the central contract. With Bangladesh set to leave for the all-important India series in the next few days, the BCB's strong stance could certainly affect the morale of the team. According to a report, Shakib-al-Hasan has signed a deal with noted telecom company 'Grameenphone', which is in violation of the central contract clause.

"BCB president Nazmul Hasan said that they will take strict action if he is unable to provide a satisfactory reply. Grameenphone, the local telecom giants, announced on October 22 that the country's leading all-rounder joined them as their brand ambassador," a website reported. "He cannot make this agreement [with a telecom company] and why he cannot make this agreement is clearly stated in our contract paper," BCB president Nazmul Hasan was quoted as saying by the Bengali daily 'Kaler Kantho' on Saturday. "Robi [Telecom] was our title sponsor and Grameenphone did not bid and instead they grabbed few cricketers by paying them TK One or Two Crores. What happened in the end? The board lost TK 90 Crores in three years," he said

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