'I deserved better after serving the nation for 20 years' - Mashrafe Mortaza on his unfortunate retirement

Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza has criticized the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for not showing professionalism when it came to his retirement. There were several miscommunications around the retirement of Mortaza, who has been the best skipper that the Bangladesh team has had, purely based on the results. 

In a recent interaction, the fast-bowler expressed his sorrow on having not got what he deserved after playing 20 years for the Bangladesh national team. The right-arm quick made his debut for Bangladesh in 2001. During his long and illustrious career, he played 36 Tests, 220 ODIs, and 54 T20Is. 

While criticizing the board, Mortaza had some kind words for the President of BCB, Nazmul Hassan Papon. The fast bowler had a disappointing World Cup 2019where he picked only one wicket in the eight matches. He admitted during the interaction that he didn’t want to retire keeping that memory in his head. 

Mashrafe Mortaza rues out on senior players not taking a step for him

“It’s unfortunate. At least I deserved better after serving the nation for 20 years. Only Papon Bhai (Nazmul Hassan) asked me what I thought about it (retirement) before the Zimbabwe series. In fact, I did not want to retire with the memory of the World Cup. I was the highest wicket-taker in the previous three series,” Mortaza said to Cricbuzz. 

After the World Cup, the 38-year-old also played an ODI series against Zimbabwe at home, where he was given a farewell. However, the former captain had expressed his will to play further for Bangladesh. The pacer even claimed that his fitness levels are much better than many experienced and established players of the national side. 

“When I was left out of the squad, I immediately knew that the chances of making a comeback are meagre. On top of that, I am 38 now. I said that I would continue to play domestic cricket as I love the game. I am just pointing out what professionalism is. The board hasn’t shown it,” Mortaza said. 

After the pandemic ended, the 37-year-old was not considered for Bangladesh, something which he pointed during the interaction. He expressed that senior members should have at least suggested to him that he will not be further taken into consideration for the ODI team. “They could’ve told me, ‘look, we are not considering you for the World Cup, play the West Indies series and retire’. The senior players of the team could’ve suggested so,” Mortaza added.