Tamim Iqbal says he can play only 5 World Cup matches, Shakib Al Hasan raises objections: Reports

The alleged cold war between two of Bangladesh’s greatest cricketers, Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan, might take center stage again, with reports of fresh differences emerging between the two days ahead of the World Cup.

According to a report in Somoy TV, Tamim informed the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that he wouldn’t be able to play more than five matches during the World Cup due to injury issues. Shakib is said to have responded by saying that he wouldn’t be part of the ICC event if BCB agreed to Tamim’s demand. He instead wants someone else to be selected.

Having missed the Asia Cup due to a back injury, Tamim, who even quit the ODI captaincy, returned to international cricket during the ongoing series against New Zealand. He scored 44 off 58 balls in the second one-dayer in Mirpur on September 23, but said after the game that there was "still lots of discomfort" in his back.

According to a post on X by Saif Ahmed, social media manager of Bangla Tigers and Rangpur Riders, Shakib was at BCB's residence last night for a meeting with the president. He claimed in the post, while quoting Somoy TV:

“According to their report, Tamim Iqbal informed BCB that if they take him to the World Cup, they have to consider the fact that he is not fully fit and Tamim also informed that he won't be able to play more than 5 matches in this World Cup."

“After hearing this, ODI captain Shakib Al Hasan said he can't accept that and even said he himself will not play the World Cup if Tamim goes to the World Cup and play only 5 games. He wants other player to play instead,” the post added.

Tamim, 34, has played 243 ODIs in his career, scoring 8357 runs at an average of 36.65. He has 14 hundreds and 56 fifties to his name.

---

“Felt good to be on the field again” - Tamim Iqbal on comeback

Earlier, speaking about his comeback innings in Mirpur, Tamim said it felt good to be on the field again although he was still in pain.

"It felt good to be on the field again. It was a nice feeling to field for 50 overs and bat for 20 overs but there's still lots of discomfort in my back. I'm working with our physio on it but the reality is, there's still pain,” he said.

The seasoned batter admitted that he was nervous given everything that had transpired over the previous few months.

"To be honest, I was nervous. Saying it was just another match wouldn't be accurate, especially considering the events of the past few months. When I went to bat, I felt the nerves, but they went away after the opening over,” Tamim added.

The third Bangladesh-New Zealand ODI will be played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Tuesday.