Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan has stated that he is ready to return home, face trial in cases including murder charges and play a farewell series if the government guarantees his security, reports Reuters.
However, the State Minister for Youth and Sports Aminul Haque today (7 August) ruled out any prospect of his return to cricket stating that he has no prospect of returning to international cricket after joining a media event featuring ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, reports AFP.
Shakib, a former lawmaker for ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League from Magura-1, has been living in the United States since Hasina's government was toppled following a deadly student-led uprising in August 2024.
Speaking to Reuters by phone from Sri Lanka, where he is playing franchise cricket, Shakib said he was willing to return and face the legal process if his safety was ensured.
"If I get the clearance from the government that my security will be ensured, I am happy to go back, face the court trial and everything that's needed to be done," Shakib said.
"I know I haven't done anything," he said.
The 39-year-old cricketer said he wanted to return immediately and still hoped to play a farewell series at home and represent Bangladesh at the 2027 one-day World Cup.
Shakib said he would try to return alongside Hasina if he could not return immediately.
"Whatever the captain says, we follow her," he said, adding, "I think they will decide it better, and we will follow the instructions given to us," reports Reuters.
Hasina, who has been living in India, was sentenced to death in absentia in November 2025 after being convicted of crimes against humanity over the crackdown on protests that killed about 1,400 people, according to the United Nations.
Shakib defended his virtual appearance at a media event in Delhi on 5 August alongside Hasina, saying he had called for peace and Bangladesh's progress and had no regrets about taking part.
He also said he had written through a lawyer to Bangladesh's interior, law and sports ministries under the previous interim government, as well as the police, seeking to have what he described as fabricated charges against him dropped. He said he received no response and was keen to discuss his return with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
However, the government has taken a different position following Shakib's appearance at the event with Hasina.
The state minister Aminul said the government had previously taken a more open approach towards Shakib, who served as a lawmaker for Hasina's former ruling Awami League, reports AFP.
"We had been looking at the matter with considerable flexibility and tolerance. After this, I do not think there is any room to think that way anymore," Aminul said in a statement.
"Someone who has taken the stage with the autocrat no longer has any opportunity to return," he added.
Shakib is currently in Sri Lanka and was among dozens facing murder investigations over the deadly police crackdown on protesters that led to the fall of Hasina's government.
A spokesperson for Rahman said Shakib was facing the consequences of being a "member of that fallen, defeated, and fugitive fascist government".
"There is absolutely nothing the current government can do to regain support for Shakib Al Hasan in the heart of people of Bangladesh," Rahman's press secretary, AAM Saleh, told Reuters in a statement.
"The domestic laws of Bangladesh apply equally to everyone, regardless of identity or status. In the eyes of the law, Shakib Al Hasan is an accused person, and he must surrender before the courts of Bangladesh to face the judicial process."
Shakib, Bangladesh's most successful cricketer and one of its best-known sporting figures, has played more than 400 international matches and represented the country at five World Cups.
He announced his retirement plans in September 2024 after Bangladesh's second Test against India but later said he would play a full series before calling time on his career.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board said in January that he could return to playing, but his participation in the 5 August event in India sparked anger.
Turning to his future in cricket, Shakib said he would not wait too long before retiring.
"I am feeling good, still enjoying the game, playing well also," he said, adding, "But ... age is not on my side at this moment, so I cannot wait for too long."
FP/R
