Mahmudullah gets a ‘Guard of Honour’ from Bangladesh teammates after Test retirement

On Saturday, July 10, Mahmudullah, the Bangladesh batter, put forth his decision of retiring from Test cricket. The Mymensingh-born made the abrupt decision amidst the ongoing Test match against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports.

The step furrowed a lot of eyebrows as he celebrated his 50th Test with his fifth century in the format. He was also involved in a 191-run stand with Taskin Ahmed. Mahmudullah told his teammates about his decision to hang his boots from the purest format of the sport.

Nazmul Hasan Papon, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president, also sounded baffled by Mahmudullah’s sudden move. In the meantime, before the final day’s play, the Bangladesh players gave Mahmudullah a ‘Guard of Honour’ for his achievements in Test cricket.

Before entering the field today, the Bangladesh team gave Mahmudullah a guard of honor. #Bangladesh #Cricket #Mahmudullah #Mahmudullahretire pic.twitter.com/ANID2goMN8

— 𝑺𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒎𝒊 🏏 (@SamiBlitz) July 11, 2021

 It was a challenge for me to prove myself: Mahmudullah

Mahmudullah has played Test cricket for around a decade, but he has somewhat strained to hold on to his place in the team. He made his comeback in the Zimbabwe Test after last playing against Pakistan back in February 2020.

On retiring, Riyad said that being away from red-ball cricket over a prolonged period of time wasn’t good for him mentally.

“It was a challenge for me to prove myself. I’m happy to be able to support my team. I’m happy to be able to play such an innings, as contributing to the team is always a happy feeling, glad to be able to do it,” Mahmudullah said.

“The mental adjustment had come to play more than the technical adjustment, as I haven’t played red-ball cricket for a while, so I was thinking how to adjust. I had thought about the bowlers, as I was measuring how much help from the seam they are taking.

“It wasn’t that easy, as I was away from the red-ball cricket for about one and a half years and I wasn’t included in the Test squad before this tour, and was included later. So I had concentrated on performing if I get an opportunity,” he added.

Mahmudullah ended his career with 2914 runs from 50 Tests at an average of 33.49 with five centuries. His top score of the unbeaten 150 came in the ongoing Test in Harare itself.