Tamim Iqbal has been suffering from an injury in his L4 and L5 (two lowest vertebrae of the lumbar spine) in his back and has been given two injections to relieve the pain. He will miss Asia Cup 2023.
Left-handed batter Tamim Iqbal has decided to step down as Bangladesh ODI captain after a recurring back injury ruled him out of the upcoming Asia Cup.
The continental ODI tournament will be held in Pakistan and Sri Lanka from August 30 to September 17.
The 34-year-old, who had announced his shock retirement from ODIs during the home series against Afghanistan before withdrawing his decision, will be eyeing the rubber against visiting New Zealand to get back into reckoning for the World Cup in India.
“I will step down as captain and concentrate as a player and try to give my best whenever the opportunity comes,” Tamim said during a press conference on Thursday.
“I believe injury is an issue. I took an injection (on July 28), but it is like a hit or miss. I have told them (the board) about the problem. I have always kept the team over everything else. So keeping that in mind, stepping down is the best possible decision.” Tamim had withdrawn his decision to retire the last time after an intervention from Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina but said this time he has informed her.
“I have spoken to the prime minister, and she understood,” Tamim said.
Tamim also had discussions with Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan and cricket operations chairman Jalal Yunus at Hassan’s residence regarding his decision.
Tamim has been suffering from an injury in his L4 and L5 (two lowest vertebrae of the lumbar spine) in his back and has been given two injections to relieve the pain. He will be able to return to training only by the end of this month.
Tamim is now preparing to play the home ODI series against New Zealand which begins on September 21, in between the Asia Cup and World Cup.
Tamim’s decision to step down from the captaincy come less than a month after he with drew his retirement from international cricket. Tamim had retired on July 6 but the following afternoon, Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina requested him to reverse his decision.
Tamim said that he told the prime minister of his decision to step down as captain on Thursday, after which he had a long discussion with BCB president Nazmul Hassan and cricket operations chairman Jalal Yunus at Hassan’s residence.
“I believe injury is an issue,” Tamim said. “I took an injection [on July 28], but it is like a hit or miss. I have told them [the board] about the problem. I have always helped the team over everything else. So keeping that in mind, stepping down is the best possible decision. I want to give my best as a player whenever the opportunity comes. I have spoken to the prime minister, and she understood.”
Jalal said that Tamim is ruled out of the Asia Cup due to the long rehabilitation period but is preparing for the ODIs against New Zealand and the World Cup in October. “He has been suffering from an injury in his L4 and L5 in his back,” he said. “He has been in treatment for almost a year. He went abroad, consulted several doctors. Recently, he consulted a doctor in London.
“The diagnosis was that his pain is generating from L4 and L5 discs. He was given two injections. The second injection, given on July 28, relieved him of pain. He has been advised to rest for two weeks, till August 11, after which he will resume his rehab. But he can only return to the nets in another two weeks. By that time, we are leaving for Asia Cup, on August 26.
“If he undergoes surgery, returning [soon] will be very difficult. He is unlikely to do that, so we are expecting him to return for the New Zealand series.”
Tamim is also hopeful of a comeback against New Zealand. “We planned it so that the hit-or-miss situation of the injection can be mitigated,” he said. “I want to play the New Zealand series in the best possible shape. We could have rushed it for the Asia Cup but we are opting against it. I am very hopeful that I will be available for the World Cup.”
In that situation, Tamim said, giving up the captaincy was an “unselfish” option. “I think the [captaincy] journey has been fantastic. The results speak for themselves. I told Papon bhai [Hassan] that it would have been very selfish of me if I had stayed on as captain. Whoever knows me, knows that I put the team ahead of myself.”
“It is certainly a shock for us,” Hassan said of Tamim’s decision. “We were not prepared for this decision. We have to now name an ODI captain at least till the World Cup; it won’t be for one or two series.”
