Former Bangladesh Batsman Rajin Saleh To Retire After Final NCL Match
Former Bangladesh skipper Rajin Saleh, on Saturday, announced he would bring down curtains on his cricket at the end of the ongoing National Cricket League.
Saleh made the news public on the opening day of the two-match Test series at Sylhet between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Saleh, who is a representative from Sylhet, was called by the organizers as part of initiative to honour the cricketers hailing from this region.
Saleh will play in the last round of the ongoing National Cricket League, scheduled to start from November 5 before hanging his boots.
“I would like to thank my Almighty first. Thanks to his blessings I could play cricket for 22 years. You know that I have played for Bangladesh for six years. I will play my last match on 5th of this month in an NCL game and after that I will retire,” Rajin told reporters.
“I would like to thank the media without whom I could not have become Rajin Saleh. You have made me Rajin Saleh and I am very much grateful to you all. My family was always with me along. I seek all of your prayers,” he concluded.
Known for his gritty and stubborn batting, Saleh burst onto the international scene at an early age of 19. He was the 12th man in Bangladesh’s inaugural Test against India in 2000. However, the early promise soon faded away as he spent about three years out of the national team.
His career finally turned around in 2003. Saleh made his Test debut against Pakistan in 2003. He also made his ODI debut on the same tour. And he soon cemented his place in the team. In 2004 ICC Champions Trophy, he captained the side in the absence of the injured Habibul Bashar. He also made an unbeaten knock of 108 against Kenya to become the third Bangladeshi batsman to score a century in One-day Internationals.
But lack of consistency soon brought about his downfall. Bangladesh finally dropped him out of the ODI team after the 2006 Champions Trophy. His final international for Bangladesh came at the 2008 Test at the Shere Bangla in Dhaka against New Zealand.
