Shakib Al Hasan will be returning home tomorrow as some of his family members are unwell. Bangladeshi athlete Shakib Al Hasan will leave South Africa on March 24 to be with his sick family members, a Bangladeshi cricket board official said on Wednesday (March 23).
BCB chief nominee Minhajul Abedin confirmed this to Cricbuzz, adding that they were not yet ready to take him out of the upcoming two-match Test series as he was expected to call after assessing the condition of his ailing family members.
“Yes, he will return home tomorrow (March 24),” Minhajul said. “We are not excluding him from the Test series but considering that he will make a decision after assessing the status of his family members,” he added.
Khaled Mahmud, the director of the Bangladesh team, said Shakib had changed his mind about returning to Dhaka on Monday, but could not do so after the March 23 match.
“Several members of his family are ill so he is sceptical. He is talking to his family about whether he should return to Dhaka. We had to book a few tickets for the last few days. We booked a ticket. Even today, because he had to leave today,” Mahmud reported by ESPNcricinfo.
“But Shakib refused will leave after playing (third ODI),” he added.
The three-match ODI series is currently tied 1-1 and the final match will be played on Wednesday in Centurion.
Understandably, Shakib is unlikely to be part of the opening match of the two-match series in Durban, but there is little chance of him winning the second Test which starts on April 8.
Although the BCB gave him the opportunity to return home due to a family emergency, Shakib decided to play his third major ODI against South Africa.
Shakib’s mother Shirin Reza was hospitalized in Dhaka for a heart attack. His daughter Errum Hasan was hospitalized for pneumonia while his son Eyzah Al Hasan was also hospitalized with the flu.
Follow MadOverCricket for the latest cricket news, cricket match updates, live cricket scores, cricket series updates, and more!