Tushar Imran, the only Bangladeshi batter with over 10,000 first-class runs retires from first-class cricket
The 37-year old batter averages 42.75 in first-class cricket and has 32 centuries and 63 fifties to his name, comfortably the most by anyone in this country.
182 matches. 11,972 runs. 28 more runs and he could've been the first Bangladeshi player with 12,000 first-class runs. In fact, he is the only Bangladeshi batter with more than 10,000 first-class runs. Tushar Imran, the most prolific Bangladeshi batter in first-class cricket, has said goodbye to the red-ball format.
Tushar wanted to retire from first-class cricket with the match between Dhaka Division and Khulna Division but injury kept him out of action. So Khulna Division's match against Rangpur Division earlier this month remains the last first-class appearance of the veteran cricketer.
The 37-year old batter averages 42.75 in first-class cricket and has 32 centuries and 63 fifties to his name, comfortably the most by anyone in this country. Despite being a domestic great, Tushar's international career doesn't have much to talk about. In 41 ODIs and five Tests, he crossed the 50-run mark only twice.
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However, he stated that he would continue to play List A cricket.
"I have always said that when I won't be able to score runs, I will call it a day myself. No one has to tell me that. During this NCL, I played three matches and missed two due to injury. I was on the verge of reaching the milestone of 12000 first-class runs. But I was nowhere near my best. So I have decided to quit first-class cricket. But I will continue to play List A cricket," Tushar told The Business Standard.
Not being able to make a comeback to the national team remains a major regret in his career. "I made my international debut in 2001 and was in and out of the team till 2007. But since 2007, I have been nowhere. Probably I could've got a chance in the 2017-18 season when I was in great form. Apart from that, I am happy that I didn't let the fighting spirit inside me die and continued to play for so long," he mentioned.
In addition, he said, "I couldn't get enough success in international cricket despite being highly successful in domestic cricket. So that's obviously a big regret in my career. I continued to play year after year, hoping that I would get an opportunity some day. Fawad Alam of Pakistan has done that. I wanted to prove that if you never give up, chances will come your way. But it didn't happen."
