Mushfiqur Rahim gives up on wicket-keeping in Tests:

Bangladesh cricketer Mushfiqur Rahim has decided to give up on wicket-keeping in the longest format of the game. His decision was based on his attempt to minimize his workload, and also prolong his career in the process. Senior Bangladesh cricketer was hesitant to give up on wicket-keeping earlier but changed his mind and decided to relinquish wicket-keeping in Test cricket only. Mushfiqur will continue to play as a batsman in Test Cricket.

The senior Bangladesh cricketer made his Test debut in 2005 against England and played his most recent Test in September against Afghanistan in 2019. Mushfiqur Rahim has played 67 Tests and scored more than 4000 runs with an average of 34.7. His highest individual score is an unbeaten 219 runs. He has scored two double-hundreds, six centuries and 19 half-centuries in Tests throughout his career.

Mushfiqur Rahim talks about his decision:

The 32-year-old said that he is not interested to keep wickets in Test because of his workload as he plays in all formats of the game. Mushfiqur explained that he plays in Dhaka Premier League (DPL) and Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) aside from International cricket and that he feels that all of this is a little too much for him.

Mushfiqur Rahim said that he wants to play cricket for a long time and he needs to think about it because he is playing in all three formats of the game. He added that he never got a severe injury during his last five years of cricket but also never got much rest either. He revealed that he took the decision in order to minimize his workload, prolong his career and to keep performing in all formats, while also not missing out on a few series for rest.

Mushfiqur said that he had talked about his decision with Bangladesh’s head coach Russell Domingo and he had no objections regarding his decision. He praised Shakib by saying everyone is not Shakib Al Hasan that he will give his hundred percent both with bat and ball. The 32-year-old accepted that his wicket-keeping and batting are not on the same level and they might not be up to the task from his side.

Mushfiqur brushed aside all speculations regarding criticism playing a role in his decision by saying that it is not something new, and if that were the case then he would have left keeping in all formats of the game instead of just Test cricket.

He claimed that he can still perform well despite keeping wickets. He said that he scored his two double-centuries and all his Test hundreds while keeping wickets to support his claim. He added that he might be a better batsman while also keeping the wickets because it helps him to get a better idea about his batting when he sees everything from behind the stumps.

Mushfiqur Rahim said that it does not matter where ever he plays because he wants to give his best everywhere. He accepted the fact that his performance might differ from place-to-place but he wants to be prepared in the best way possible. He said that after considering everything, he felt like he could sacrifice his keeping in order to keep giving his best for a long time as a player.

He made it clear that if the team management wants him to keep wickets in Future Tests then it is up to them. He said he gives preference to the demands of the team management but for the time being he does not want to keep wickets in Test Cricket.