Former Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal confirmed his retirement from international cricket through a social media post on Friday.
Tamim’s announcement comes after the Bangladesh selection committee asked him to report for the upcoming Champions Trophy.
“I have been away from international cricket for a long time. This distance will remain. My chapter in international cricket is over. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time. Now that an important event like the Champions Trophy is approaching, I don’t want to be the center of anyone’s attention, which could cause the team to lose concentration. Of course, I didn’t want it to happen sooner,” Tamim wrote on his official Facebook page.
“Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto sincerely asked me to come back to the team. Discussions were also held with the selection committee. I’m grateful that they still consider me on the team. However, I listened to my heart,” he added.
Tamim made his ODI debut in February 2007 against Zimbabwe in Harare. He soon made a name for himself in various formats, becoming one of the most reliable batsmen in the Bangladesh team.
The left-handed batsman is Bangladesh’s second highest run-scorer in international cricket, behind Mushfiqur Rahim. Tamim also has the most international hundreds from Bangladesh in all formats.
Tamim Iqbal in international cricket
| Matches | He’s running | Average | 100 pp | High score | |
| Tests | 70 | 5134 | 38.89 | 10 | 206 |
| ODI | 243 | 8357 | 36.65 | 14 | 158 |
| T20I | 78 | 1758 | 24/08 | 1 | 103* |
