Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Chairman Faruque Ahmed has finally broken his silence on the murder case filed against cricket superstar Shakib Al Hasan.
Shakib is undoubtedly the best cricketer to have represented Bangladesh on the international stage. Since his debut in 2006, he has dominated with his performances in all three formats of the game.
Shakib Al Hasan has already represented Bangladesh in 68 Test matches, 247 ODIs and 129 T20Is. Although he is currently in top form and can offer his services to Bangladesh for a few more years, it seems that the 37-year-old will not be able to do so due to the legal issues he is facing at the moment.
Shakib Al Hasan got into trouble after the fall of the previous government in Bangladesh, as he was an MP from that party.
Since then, he has not returned to Bangladesh and has remained abroad. Amidst all the chaos in Bangladesh, Shakib Al Hasan has been named in a murder case filed by Rafiqul Islam, the father of Rubel, a garment factory worker who was killed on August 5 in Adabora, Dhaka.
A legal notice has already been sent to the Bangladesh Cricket Board to expel Shakib Al Hasan from the national team. The notice mentions that the all-rounder should be expelled from the Bangladesh national team because the ICC rules, which are in force, do not allow the alleged murderers to play international cricket, Cricbuzz reported.
Faruque Ahmed reveals the future of Shakib Al Hasan
BCB President Faruque Ahmed met with his board of directors on Saturday and after the meeting, he spoke on the matter.
He said that they will take a decision on the future of Shakib Al Hasan after the conclusion of the ongoing first Test between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi, in which the all-rounder is participating.
“Let me talk about Shakib. A case has been filed. We have not received any legal notice yet. An FIR (first information letter) has been filed in the case and then there will be an investigation and after that the case will move in one direction or the other,” Faruque Ahmed told reporters after the meeting, as quoted by Cricbuzz.
“Now we are playing a Test match and it is very good news that we have played well on the fourth day and tomorrow is the fifth day, the decisive day of the Test match and I think at this point of time we are not thinking of taking any stand. After the match is over tomorrow we will sit and take a decision. At that point of time we can also say something about the legal notice as we will get it at that point of time,” the BCB president said.
“Look, the FIR is just the first information letter and as far as I know, they have not filed any charges yet and before that it is difficult to take a decision. Look, the relationship with BCB and Shakib al Hasan is like that of a player and an employer as per the contract and after tomorrow we can decide exactly after receiving the legal notice and based on that. I cannot withdraw him from the middle of the Test match,” he added.
“You know the second Test match is on August 30 and we will take it in the middle as there is a gap and we can think what can be done about it,” Faruque Ahmed added.
As demand grows for Shakib Al Hasan to return to Bangladesh for further investigation, he hopes the Bangladesh Cricket Board will take a decision in his favour, otherwise the result would be one of the greatest cricket careers coming to an abrupt end.