Mahmudullah, Bangladesh’s long-serving all-rounder, has stated that he will retire from T20Is following the three-match series against India. The 38-year-old made his T20I debut against Kenya in 2007 and has the third-longest career in the format, trailing only his colleague Shakib Al Hasan and Zimbabwe’s Sean Williams (17 years and 35 days). Mahmudullah now features in ODIs only, as he had already retired from Tests in 2021.
Mahmudullah follows Shakib, who declared his T20I retirement effective immediately during the second Test in Kanpur. Mahmudullah stated that he has decided to retire following the India series and would want to focus on ODIs after a good World Cup last year on a personal level, ahead of the three-match ODI series in the West Indies in December and the Champions Trophy in 2025.
Reflecting on his career, he described the 2016 T20 World Cup defeat to India as the most difficult event, while the Nidahas Trophy in 2018 was his favorite moment. He had struck 43 off 18 balls as Bangladesh edged the hosts Sri Lanka to reach the final, although they lost to India.
“Most frustrating moment was in Bangalore 2016 against India. Probably one of the most life-changing moments for me because that was a big learning curve for me. And great moment probably in Nidahas Trophy (2018) the match that we won against Sri Lanka.”
Mahmudullah has scored 2,395 runs for Bangladesh at a strike rate of 117.74 and taken 40 wickets in 139 T20I games.
