It takes an hour to find a replacement in Bangladesh: Mushfiq
Mushfiqur has already made it known that he will not be touring Pakistan with the side.
Bangladesh Cricket team's scheduled Pakistan tour is due this January as the Tigers will travel to Karachi to play three T20Is.
Mushfiqur Rahim, one of the crucial members of the national side, has let everyone know his decision of not touring to Pakistan at all because of his family's worries about the security in Pakistan.
In the press conference following Khula Tigers' defeat in the Bangabandhu Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) T20 2019-20, Mushfiqur Rahim was asked if he had any suggestions regarding his replacement as he was not going. In reply, Mushfiqur joked about it a little saying that it took an hour to replace someone in the national team.
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"I personally feel that it takes an hour to find a replacement in the Bangladesh team. My target always has been to ensure my place in the side for the next series. I don't set a target that there is a World Cup or Asia Cup ahead. My target is the upcoming Zimbabwe series and I will prepare myself for that," the wicketkeeper-batsman said.
He further added that it was an opportunity for the other players to shine in his absence. He said, "There are a lot of players, many have done well. If you think about either the BPL or the India series, for those who played well there, this is a big chance for them. Whoever gets the chance, I hope they make proper use of it. If I come back to the side, I will try to keep my place."
Bangladesh are already without two players of their core group as Mashrafe Mortaza does not play in either T20Is or Tests and Shakib Al Hasan is banned until late this year. Mushfiq has decided not to go and there are rumours about Mahmudullah Riyad being unwilling of going to Pakistan too which leaves only Tamim Iqbal among the senior players to be touring Pakistan. Questioned about this, Mushfiq replied that even when they all played, they lost loads of matches and them not being here was an opportunity to look at new players.
"What good did happen when I played in India? We lost both the Test matches within three days. Even when we five played together, we lost a lot of matches across all formats. There is a chance of the team doing well with us but it is not a must. What I think is that this is an opportunity. Bangladesh cricket is searching for new cricketers and those who will play instead of us will provide the opportunity to look at new players. I am wishing everyone good luck because it will be challenging to play against Pakistan in Pakistan, I hope the team will play well," the 32-year old said.
The first phase of Bangladesh's three-legged tour of Pakistan is scheduled from January 24 to January 27 at Karachi where Bangladesh will play three T20Is.
