Rubel Hossain started his journey from the Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium 17 years ago. Even at the turning point of his international career, he faced the same Mirpur Stadium. It is natural to be a little emotional. But not a little, Rubel became very emotional. Although he somehow held back his tears, no one noticed that he got confused and his words broke while speaking. The fans, who were used to seeing the traditionally aggressive Rubel, saw a completely different version of him today. He said goodbye to the national team jersey with emotion.
Rubel Hossain touched the wicket of Mirpur in the farewell match. Photo: Collected
Rubel Hossain touched the wicket of Mirpur in the farewell match. Photo: Collected
Sports reporter
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The tradition of cricketers leaving the field has not been seen much in Bangladeshi cricket before or since. So everyone was a little curious about Rubel’s departure, what special was going to happen this time. However, Rubel’s emotion overshadowed all the arrangements and caught everyone’s attention.
Rubel has not played international cricket for five years. The 36-year-old pacer officially announced his retirement on social media on Wednesday. The Bangladesh Cricket Board honored Rubel at a small event ahead of the second match of the Bangladesh-New Zealand ODI series today (April 20).
On the day of his farewell, Rubel seemed to have gone back to his old memories. He brought his son Ayan with him in the morning. After the toss, he entered the field with his son. He was seen standing and talking for a while with BCB President Tamim Iqbal. After a while, the main formalities began.
Cricketers and support staff lined up on both sides of the field in a corner. BCB ad hoc committee chairman Tamim Iqbal, members Rafiqul Islam Babu, Fahim Sinha and board chief executive Nizam Uddin Chowdhury were present at the event.
As a memento of his honour, Rubel was presented with a three-piece jersey with a crest and frame, engraved with his bowling statistics.
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Rubel got emotional while speaking after receiving the award. He said that he feels honored by the BCB’s arrangement to bid him farewell. Rubel said, “When I announced my retirement on my social media, later our Cricket Board President Tamim Iqbal called me and said, ‘Rubel, we want to honour you.’ It was a matter of great pride and joy for me and today, they have created such a beautiful atmosphere and honoured me in such a beautiful way. For this, I express my sincere thanks and best wishes to the BCB and our President Tamim Iqbal.”
Rubel’s rise to the top level of the country’s cricket from the ‘pacer hunt’ competition. Rubel also remembered the coach Sarwar Imran, who played the biggest role in bringing Rubel up from there, during his farewell speech, ‘Not to mention one person, the contribution of the person behind me becoming the Rubel Hossain I am today is different for me. The person who brought me from the pacer hunt and gave me the ladder to climb up is my favorite coach, my respected Sarwar Imran Sir. I will be grateful to Sir for the rest of my life.’
In his speech, Rubel also recalled, ‘I sincerely thank all my coaches, from school tournaments since childhood, and from the national stage to my physio and our grounds staff, all the coaches who have given me a lot of support, given me courage, and been by my side.’
Addressing his parents, he said, “I am able to stand here today because of two people, my father and my mother, who have sincerely given me courage, been by my side, and loved me selflessly. I miss them very much today.”
The biggest highlight of Rubel’s bowling in international cricket was the match against England in the 2015 World Cup. In that match, this pacer’s two unforgettable balls are still immortalized in the country’s cricket. While talking about Rubel on the farewell day, Taskin Ahmed recalled that memory.
Taskin said, “I still remember the match against England in the 2015 World Cup, it was such a difficult situation and you helped us qualify with two wickets in two balls (actually three balls). I still remember that saying, ‘Don’t go for hero, go for hero’, Rubel Hossain won the match. I have many memories in Birmingham too, not to mention that, but thank you very much.”
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