Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal cleared the air about his absence in the last few matches of the Indian Premier League franchise Pune Warriors that dragged him into an unnecessary controversy in the recent times.
Warriors’ owner Subrata Roy Sahara at a press conference in Dhaka on Friday said they wanted to play Tamim in the last four matches, but could not do so as the opener had already left India for personal reasons.
It caused confusion as there was no news of Tamim returning to Dhaka, prompting the media to suggest that he might have gone to Malaysia, his common holiday destination.
Tamim told reporters on Saturday that he had returned home on May 12 with only two matches of Pune Warriors left and he had taken permission for it from the team management. Tamim also said that he had informed it to the Bangladesh Cricket Board and was granted leave on a personal ground.
‘I came to Bangladesh on May 12 for some personal reasons. Before I came, I discussed it with Sushanta Roy, the son of Subrata Roy, and took his permission,’ Tamim told the press conference.
‘I knew I had to take permission from the BCB and I did so. I took everyone’s approval to solve my problem,’ said Tamim.
‘IPL is a very big stage so if I had any disciplinary issues with the team, it would have come in the newspapers. But nothing like this happened; I have an excellent relationship with them,’ he said, adding that he even had a meeting with the Pune owner at the Ruposhi Bangla hotel in the morning before he attended a press conference.
Tamim said he was unavailable for just two matches, though the Pune owner said he was not with them for four matches. Tamim said it was simply a misunderstanding as the Pune owner was not aware of his problems.
‘I wasn’t available for the last two matches. He [Pune owner Subrata Roy Sahara] wasn’t too involved with the team; his son took care of everything. I think there was a miscommunication,’ said Tamim.
The opener, however, was disappointed at not being able to play any game after he was finally picked by an IPL team.
‘I waited for four years to get chance to play in the tournament so I was very excited. But I didn’t play due to team combination or whatever,’ he said.
‘It was very frustrating, because I went there with very good form. I thought I would play from the start, but the team combination is the most important factor.’ said Tamim.
Despite his no-show in the tournament, Tamim is happy that at least the IPL teams have changed their perception of Bangladesh cricket and he gave credit to Sakib al Hasan for it.
‘I think the perception has changed. When we discuss something,
I can talk proudly that we have this, we have good players. When Sakib wasn’t picked, players from other countries kept on saying, “Why isn’t he picked?” It felt good to listen,’ said Tamim.
‘Clarke [Australian skipper] and I talked a few times, and I realised that he follows our batch and said that we have a chance at the next World Cup,’ he added.
-With New Age input
