Tamim Iqbal retires: 5 major controversies in former Bangladesh captain's international career

Former Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal has called it a day on his international career. Current Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto asked senior player Iqbal to play for the nation in the upcoming matches, but he refused and announced retirement.

Tamim Iqbal ended his career as one of the most successful cricketers in Bangladesh's history. He was the hero for Bangladesh in their historic 2007 ODI World Cup win against India. Apart from that, Iqbal also captained Bangladesh, leading the nation to 21 ODI wins.

While fans will remember Iqbal for his captaincy and batting, the former Bangladesh opener was also involved in many controversies during his career. Here's a list of five such controversies.

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#1 When Tamim Iqbal missed the 2023 World Cup for being 'childish'

Bangladesh had a forgettable campaign in the 2023 World Cup. They could not qualify for the semifinals, managing two wins in nine matches. Their campaign started with a huge controversy involving Iqbal and skipper Shakib Al Hasan.

The team management announced that Iqbal was not named in the squad due to back injury. Later, Shakib disclosed that he wanted Iqbal to bat at number three, but the latter refused. Hence, the Bangladesh captain said Iqbal was not a team man and behaved like a kid.

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#2 When Tamim Iqbal reversed his retirement

Fans should note that this is not the first time Iqbal has announced his retirement. He suddenly made up his mind to quit the game on July 6, 2023 after a bilateral match against Afghanistan.

However, just a day later, Bangladesh's then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, former team captain Mashrafe Mortaza and BCB Chief Nazmul Hassan had a chat with Iqbal, convincing him to take his retirement back. Iqbal agreed and made himself available for the nation again.

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#3 Asia Cup 2012 controversy

Asia Cup 2012 was a memorable tournament for Bangladesh because they made it to the finals on home turf. However, before the competition, there was a controversy surrounding Iqbal's place.

Iqbal, who was recovering from typhoid, had been dropped from the squad by the then BCB President Mustafa Kamal. However, he had cleared a fitness test just two days before. Hence, it gave birth to a fresh controversy in Bangladesh cricket, which eventually resulted in Iqbal getting selected but chief selector Akram Khan (also Tamim's uncle) quitting his position.

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#4 When Tamim Iqbal gave a shoulder nudge to Brendon McCullum

During the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25, Virat Kohli grabbed the headlines when he had a shoulder bump with Australia's Sam Konstas. It resulted in a penalty for Kohli.

A similar incident happened in October 2013 as well during a Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand. At the end of the 24th over of New Zealand's innings in a Test in Mirpur, Iqbal gave a shoulder nudge to batter Brendon McCullum while changing his fielding position.

ICC officials slammed Iqbal with a 50% match fee fine for making physical contact with McCullum. The Bangladesh player accepted the charge and admitted to the offence.

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#5 When Tamim Iqbal stepped down as vice-captain

It is rare to see a player step down from a vice-captain's position in cricket. However, Iqbal made the headlines by announcing the same during a press conference in 2014.

"With such a long season coming up, I think it is in the best interest of the team that I focus on my batting," Tamim had said.

Notably, when team's regular captain Mushfiqur Rahim got injured ahead of the T20I series against Sri Lanka in 2014, the management named Mashrafe Mortaza as new captain while keeping Iqbal as his deputy. Hence, it seemed like Iqbal stepped down as vice-captain due to that reason, but neither Iqbal nor Mortaza confirmed the same.