Even if a player retires suddenly, some official protocols are followed. However, in Bangladesh all-rounder Mahmuduallah Riyad’s case, nothing was there. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hasan expressed surprise at the whole incident. At the end of the match, skipper Mominul Haque did not agree to comment in detail!
Before the start of the last day of the Test in Harare on Sunday, Bangladesh cricketers lined up in two lines. Mahmudullah entered the field through them. In other words, this 'Guard of Honor' meant that this was his last day in Test cricket. Later, the commentators also announced that he was going to retire. There was no other way to be sure.
Because Mahmudullah himself remained surprisingly silent after the news came out quoting some media sources about his retirement. There was no word on his retirement in a video sent to the media at the end of the third day's play in Harare. He did not appear in front of the media to speak even after the match.
When contacted, the BCB president, he repeatedly expressed his surprise. But all sides seem reluctant to make it clear whether Mahmudullah is actually retiring. The veteran cricketer was dropped from the Test squad last year due to poor form. Coach Russell Domingo said he would have to fight for his return.
But he was dramatically drafted after 17 months without any long-range tests. He surprisingly played as number eight batsman in his return Test against Zimbabwe. After playing his career-best innings of 150 runs to pull his team out of danger, there was a hint of a new birth of his career. But Mahmudullah himself ruled out that possibility and that too in a dramatic fashion.
