“Tamim will continue to be one of the best batters but nobody wants to see him lose form by playing T20s forcibly,” Mashrafe said
Mashrafe said that Tamim avoided unnecessary pressure on his good form in Tests and ODIs, by skipping the T20 World Cup. “Everyone should respect Tamim’s decision,” Mashrafe said. “There’s no doubt that Tamim is one of the best batsmen in Bangladesh. His statistics says so. He had every qualification to play in the T20 World Cup, and it is well know that the cricket board and team management would keep him in the squad.
Hassan, for his part, said that Tamim took a good decision by considering all sides of the situation. He confirmed that they had selected Tamim in the World Cup-bound squad.
“He was our first choice. He was in the T20 World Cup squad. But after he informed us, he is no longer in the team. He will play more World Cups in the future. It was a brave decision, not as easy one.
“Everyone wants to play the World Cup, but he thought about it and then spoke to us. He thought there would be injustice if he gets to play ahead of those playing now,” said Hassan.
Mashrafe praised Tamim for respecting the incumbents Soumya Sarkar, Mohammad Naim and Liton Das after they were severely criticised for their form. These three players, he predicted, will in turn have tremendous commitment when they next play ODIs under Tamim. “They are playing on wickets where nobody except (Mahmudullah) Riyad has touched fifty. It would be unfair to judge Soumya, Naim and Liton before they get to play on true batting wickets. These boys have worked hard in the (home) series.
“Some decisions change people’s lives. After this decision, Soumya, Liton and Naim will give their all when they next play an ODI under Tamim. This is because whatever anyone else thought, Tamim valued their hard work,” he said.
Mashrafe, however, suggested Tamim felt might have felt the pressure even in the dressing room had we walked into the playing XI after missing at least 12 T20Is this year. “Tamim is well liked in the dressing room but maybe he thought deeply about how he would be welcomed into the side after he missed 16 (sic 12) matches in the format,” he said.
Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84
Source: ESPN Crickinfo