Tamim Iqbal, the former captain of Bangladesh, has chosen not to participate in the forthcoming Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and has asked the board to remove his name from the November 23 players’ auction. On Sunday, November 16, the left-handed opener verified the development.
Tamim Iqbal has participated in every BPL tournament from its inaugural year in 2012 and has become one of its most successful players. As a leader and a top-order batsman, he was instrumental in leading Fortune Barishal to back-to-back championships. For the team and the competition overall, his absence represents a big shift.
“Yes (I am not taking part in BPL) as I have requested Shahriar Nafees (BCB cricket operation manager) to remove my name from players draft,” Tamim Iqbal was cited by Cricbuzz as saying.
A number of issues led to Tamim’s decision to withdraw from the competition, so it was not a huge surprise. Concerns over his health and Fortune Barishal’s decision to forego the forthcoming BPL season due to a lack of time to prepare for the tournament were among them.
Since having a heart attack during a domestic match in March 2024, Tamim Iqbal has not played professional cricket.
Since then, he has prioritised his recuperation over a hasty comeback to the pitch. Tamim had also expressed interest in cricket administration and had originally intended to run in the BCB elections but later changed his mind after claiming that the government was meddling in the election process.
On November 23, the BPL players’ auction will be held at a city hotel. Five teams—the Dhaka Capitals, Chattogram Royals, Rajshahi Warriors, Rangpur Riders, and Sylhet Titans—will bid to assemble their teams for the tournament’s 12th edition.
After a 12-year hiatus, this year’s auction represents a big shift. Before the league switched to a players’ draft model for the following nine seasons, the auction method was only utilised for the first two editions in 2012 and 2013.
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