Shakib seeks to skip Zim tour

Shakib Al Hasan has requested the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to give him rest during the Zimbabwe tour where Bangladesh will play an unofficial T20 tournament from June 18.

BCB cricket operations committee chairman Enayet Hossain Siraj admitted that the world's No 1 all-rounder gave them a letter few days ago in which he expressed his desire to be left out of the Zimbabwe-bound Tigers squad.

But Siraj said yesterday that they are yet to take any decisions about Shakib while chief selector Akram Khan said that they weren't informed about the matter officially.

BCB announced a 15-member squad which naturally included Shakib last Thursday and the team is supposed to leave Dhaka on June 12.

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"We received a letter from Shakib few days ago in which he requested to drop him from the Zimbabwe trip as he needs a break after a grueling season," said Siraj. "He also rang me yesterday (Tuesday) to explain the reasons. He said that he has some minor injuries which may aggravate if he doesn't take rest."

"I asked our national team physio [Vibhav Singh] and trainer [Grant Luden] to give me a report on his current condition and we will take a decision about his letter within the next two days," he added.

Shakib had an MRI on his left knee while also complaining about a side strain which he seemingly picked up while playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders last month.

Siraj was in favour of giving Shakib rest to make sure that he will be available for official matches in Ireland and the Netherlands in July.

"Without any doubt, the question will be raised why he didn't take the rest during the IPL or the domestic competition [Dhaka Premier League] and many may think that it's unfair to take rest when it comes to national duty.

"But I feel that it would be good for us if we can give him rest for the Zimbabwe tour where we are going to play unofficial matches. Shakib is a very professional guy so he wants it only because he genuinely needs it.

"It would be a huge loss for us if he breaks down during the tri-nation tournament in Zimbabwe, so we must be careful before taking any decision about him," said Siraj.

Akram, on the other hand, said he hadn't received any official word on the matter, although Shakib did meet the selectors in the presence of captain Mushfiqur Rahim, new coach Richard Pybus and bowling coach Shane Jurgensen.

"Unfortunately we (the selectors) knew nothing about the matter, so I can't comment on it," said Akram.

Soon after returning from the IPL, Shakib said that he had an immediate feeling of taking a break from cricket following a grueling season. But he was not sure whether he will take rest rather he lent support to Victoria Sporting Club to clinch the league title.

He also jokingly said that he always changes his plans, so one can't be sure whether he will ultimately take rest and skip the Zimbabwe trip.

Shakib, who came to the board office yesterday to meet the newly-appointed coach Pybus, was not ready to make any comments on this issue rather he said that he was looking forward to tomorrow's Premier League title-deciding match between Victoria and Old DOHS at the Fatullah Cricket Stadium.