Tearful Tamim announces shock retirement from international cricket

Bangladesh's one-day international captain Tamim Iqbal on Thursday announced his immediate retirement from all forms of international cricket, a sudden development coming in the middle of a series against Afghanistan.

"Yesterday against Afghanistan was my last international game, I am retiring from international cricket effective right now," Tamim told reporters.

He broke into tears as he made the announcement, with the press conference broadcast live on national television.

"There was no sudden reason behind this, I was thinking about it for quite some time," he added. "I was talking about it with my family members for a few days. I thought this was (the) right time for me to decide."

Tamim's decision came just two days after he came under heavy criticism for deciding to play against Afghanistan in the first ODI of a three-match series, despite admitting to not being 100 percent fit.

Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan led the criticism, calling the player's professionalism into question.

The veteran left-hander scored 5,134 runs from the 134 innings he played in 70 Tests, scoring 10 hundreds. He retired from Twenty20 internationals in 2022.