Facebook face-off: Shakib suggests sports adviser blocked his return to Bangladesh team as Asif says 'I was right'

Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan had planned to retire from Tests with a match against South Africa in Dhaka in October last year. He was even included in the squad for that game. However, he could not return home, something he says he still regrets.

The all-rounder has now indirectly blamed Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan for blocking his chance to represent the Tigers again.

While cricket fans were engrossed in the India-Pakistan clash in the Asia Cup final in Dubai, a war of words unfolded on social media between Shakib and Asif late on Sunday night (28 September).

Both posted statuses on Facebook. Neither mentioned any names, but it was not hard to guess whom they were referring to.

The banter started after former Awami League MP Shakib, in a post on his verified Facebook page, shared at 8:52pm, wished a happy birthday to ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina. He also shared a photo of himself and Hasina, whose birthday was on Sunday, taken during a past event.

The post drew mixed reactions from people from all walks of life.

In a veiled response to Shakib's post, Adviser Asif wrote on his personal Facebook profile at 10:04pm: "You hurled a thousand insults at me for not rehabilitating one person. But I was right. End of the discussion."

He also shared that post on his verified official page, drawing similar reactions from netizens.

In what seemed to be a riposte, Shakib then posted at 11:19pm: "At last, someone has admitted that because of him, I was not allowed to wear the Bangladesh jersey, I could not play for my country!

"Perhaps one day I will return to my motherland, I love Bangladesh."

Shakib is currently playing in domestic T20 leagues around the world. A few days ago, he featured in the Caribbean Premier League. His last match for Bangladesh was against India in October last year.

The cricketer, who contested in the 12th national election in January 2024 with an Awami League ticket and was elected MP from Magura-1 constituency, was in Canada on 5 August last year, when the student-led mass uprising toppled Sheikh Hasina's government.

Since then, he has not been able to return to the country. Like other Awami League leaders and former MPs, Shakib now faces multiple cases filed over various charges, including murder, share market manipulation, and corruption.

Once one of the country's cricketing icons, Shakib has now found himself estranged from the sport that once defined him — not because of injury or poor form, but due to the political fallout of his actions. His association with the ousted Awami League and his tenure as an MP have cast a long shadow over his legacy.

Shakib was expected to play his farewell Test in Mirpur in October last year, but concerns over his safety because of his ties to the Awami League and his silence during the July Uprising kept him from taking the field.

Still, back in April this year, Shakib expressed unwavering conviction in his political choices, despite the significant impact they have had on his career.

"I don't see anything wrong in what I did… If it were a mistake for me to join politics, then anyone who joins politics in the future would also be making a mistake," Shakib declared in a candid interview with Daily Sun.

He was quick to defend his decision, emphasising the right of any citizen to join politics. "Joining politics is a right for any citizen… I think I was right when I joined, and I still believe I was right because my intention was to work for the people of Magura," said the former Bangladesh captain.