Who else but Shakib

There is exactly two months to go before the ODI World Cup. The 10 participating countries of the World Cup have nearly finished forming their squads. The word ‘nearly’ has to be used because some of the teams are still trying to fill 1 or 2 spots. Bangladesh is also one of them. But in one way, Bangladesh stands out among all of the participating teams. None of the other teams is trying to find the answer to a ‘million dollar question’ like Bangladesh. That question is– Who will be the captain in the World Cup?

Many teams have lost important players right before the World Cup in the past for injuries or for some other reasons. But has any team ever seen a captain who has been leading the team for three years step down from his post just two months before a World Cup? No, they haven’t. In that sense, Tamim Iqbal has actually made a record!

However, there is one example somewhat like Tamim’s case. With less than two months to go before the 2015 World Cup, England changed their captain. But Allister Cook didn’t step down from captaincy like Tamim. The English cricket authority removed him from the post and appointed Eoin Morgan to lead England to a new era in the shorter formats. That World Cup ended up being a disaster for England. But four years later, England were crowned champions in the 2019 World Cup. The name of the captain who lifted the trophy? Eoin Morgan.

Once the English selectors decided that they needed to change Cook and start playing a new brand of cricket in ODIs, they thought Morgan would be the ideal candidate for the job. For Bangladesh, the situation is not like that. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president on Thursday night said what he had been saying for a few days now. BCB wanted Tamim to remain as the captain in the World Cup, they have not considered anyone else for the role.

But now they have to. Some, however, could argue that this is old news. When Tamim announced his retirement from cricket in dramatic fashion on 6 July, the board had no choice but to search for a new skipper. And also a new opener.

But after Tamim reversed his retirement the following day after talking with prime minister Sheikh Hasina, both of those searches were stopped. As Tamim is not retiring, he will naturally remain as captain.

The BCB president claimed that he had no idea that Tamim would step down from captaincy. There is no reason to not believe this claim. However, Tamim’s unretirement has at least reduced the burden on the BCB as now they just have to find a new captain, not a new opener.

After building up the ODI team for three years, Tamim’s decision to leave captaincy is surprising. However, considering the reason he gave for stepping down, the decision doesn’t seem as shocking. The pain in his lower spine can return at any time. Having a captain who is at injury risk at all times will definitely have a detrimental effect on the team. Every cricketer dreams of leading their team in the World Cup. But this seems like a valid enough reason to sacrifice that dream.

But is it? Then why did Tamim after the third ODI against England in March in Chattogram told this correspondent, “Wait and watch, I won’t be the captain in the World Cup.”

He didn’t answer if he would let go of it himself or will the BCB remove him. All he said, “I don’t know how it will happen. But I won’t be the captain in the World Cup.”

As Tamim didn’t give a reason himself, one can only assume the reason. He was sad for not getting the recognition he felt he deserved as captain. He was playing with an injury-laden body, with constant pain– still some people questioned if he was faking it! That definitely hurt Tamim. Probably he was unhappy with the coach’s actions on the issue as well.

Even one year back, I heard Tamim talking about his dreams for the World Cup. He wanted to announce his team as a contender for the World Cup. He said, “If we finish in the top 4 of the ICC ODI league, and then me or someone else says in the 2023 World Cup that, ‘We are here to win the trophy’, they will have to take us seriously.”

Bangladesh finished at No.3. Still, Tamim selflessly sacrificed his dream of going out for the toss in the World Cup.

But Tamim at the same time has left the team in a testing situation. The magnitude of the test is even higher for the BCB. Two names are floating around as the next captain. One of them is a tested veteran. Who Tamim himself rated as the ‘most tactically astute captain in Bangladesh.’ He is already leading the team in Tests and Twenty20s so there is no question about his tuning with the coach and the support staff. Leading the team in a World Cup is also nothing new for him. Shakib Al Hasan had done that way back in 2011.

Litton Kumar Das’s name is also being floated around mainly because he is the vice-captain in ODIs. So he was being considered as the future captain. But nobody thought the future would arrive so suddenly.

Now the board has to decide whether they will select an experienced captain like Shakib for a mega event like the World Cup or will they think long term and name Litton as the captain?

If you’ve read the opinions of the four former cricketers and experts published in the sports page of today’s Prothom Alo, you’ll see that even they are split. An argument could be made for both of them.

Maybe naming Litton as captain for a mega event like the World Cup could be a bit unfair to him. The batter Litton Das could get buried underneath the pressure of captaincy. In that sense, giving Shakib the opportunity to leave his mark in what could be his final World Cup seems like a good option, what do you think?

*This report appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ashfaq-Ul-Alam Niloy