Mashrafe Mortaza rubbishes rumours of his ODI retirement

Bangladeshi international cricketer Mashrafe Mortaza decided to hang his boots from the shortest format of the game after the T20 series against the Sri Lankans in April this year. Following his retirement, there were rumours about the pacer deciding the same for his One Day international career as well. But the reports were denied by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hasan.

He said speaking to reporters a few days ago “let me clear one thing, Mashrafe is just not a player but he is also our ODI captain,”

In an exclusive interview with Cricbuzz, Mashrafe Mortaza made his intentions clear. According to the veteran, he will take a call on his career when he feels the lack of enjoyment in the game. Mortaza said that he has been a long serving member of the team and he has earned respect. He does not have the intentions to carry on despite the will and spoil his image. Having said that he claimed right now he is enjoying his cricket and will only retire when he gets a signal from his body and mind.

What Mortaza had to say:

When asked about the spreading rumours regarding his One Day international retirement, Mortaza said “First of all, you must analyse who is trying to speculate all these things and what is their purpose. It is clear to me, their motives, and it really does not matter as I am clear to my conscience. Secondly, I am sure that if I don’t enjoy the game that drives me to play international cricket, I will get some kind of a signal and I won’t be playing. Like say… if I am not enjoying the fitness camp [in Dhaka] or had felt that the load is a bit too much for me, it can be considered as a sign that my time is getting short.”

“To be honest, till date, these kind of things [to pack my baggage] did not occur to my mind. I am playing international cricket for the last 16 to 17 years and with [my] head held high. I don’t want to spoil my reputation trying to continue playing for six to 12 months even after knowing that my time is over. I can assure you that I have the knowledge and experience to understand when my time is over”.