Four senior cricketers may retire after 2023 World Cup, says Tamim

Bangladesh One-Day International cricket captain Tamim Iqbal says he and three other senior players -- Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah Riyad -- may quit cricket after the end of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 in India.

Tamim made the statement while speaking about World Cup preparations after Bangladesh won the ODI series against the West Indies. But the most successful batsman of Bangladesh cricket did not share whether these plans included a departure from all forms of international cricket or only from the ODI format, reports bdnews24.com.

The four players, along with Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, were once considered part of the same cohort - the five senior players of Bangladesh. The Tigers, led by Mashrafe, failed to meet expectations in the 2019 World Cup, and Mashrafe performed poorly. He quit cricket after leading a series against Zimbabwe as captain in 2020 amid questions about his place in the team.

Mashrafe dropped out of the team afterwards and never returned, closing the curtains on an illustrious career.

The possible end of the careers of the remaining four is also a hot topic in the country's cricketing world. Of the group, Shakib and Mushfiqur have been playing international cricket for 16 years and Tamim has been playing for 15 years, while Mahmudullah will enter his 15th year in 10 days.

Mushfiqur and Shakib did not take part in the ODI series against the West Indies as they were on leave. But the two are an integral part of the team with Tamim as captain. There are concerns over Mahmudullah's form, fitness and place in the team. But Tamim's remarks after the tournament in Guyana on Wednesday indicate Mahmudullah will still keep his place in the squad for the World Cup, which is still a year off.

Tamim discussed the future while shedding light on the areas of improvement after the West Indies series.

"There are still many aspects we could improve further. The 2023 World Cup will probably be one of the biggest tournaments for us, especially for the four of us. We may end up there. We just have to perform and put together the best possible team," Tamim said.

Tamim later clarifies his remarks in a Facebook post citing the names of the four players.