Goodbye Nannu! (26 August 1999)

26 August 1999

Goodbye Nannu!

The Daily Star

Former national captain Minhazul Abedin, affectionately called Nannu by the cricketing fraternity, announced his retirement from international cricket yesterday.

The gutsy cricketer from Chittagong, who started his luminous career way back in 1983, however remained enigmatic for long. But he could not hope for a better time to call it a day, especially after his excellent showing at the World Cup, where he scored two half centuries including a match-winning unbeaten 68 against Scotland.

Included by BCB at the last moment in the World Cup squad under pressure from the press, Minhazul certainly enjoyed the finest moment of his career spanning over 17 years in the big show at England this summer.

Born on September 25, 1965 at Chittagong, Minhazul made his one-day debut in the Asia Cup against Pakistan in 1985. He scored 453 runs in his 27 international matches averaging 18.87. A solid right-hand batsman, Minhazul was also a very useful slow-medium bowler. He captured 13 wickets averaging 39.30.

He played his last and the most memorable one-day match against Pakistan at Northampton, which Bangladesh won by 62 runs.

"I could have played for another couple of years. But I want to quit with dignity and pride. I had to go through a strenuous time in the past due to the non-cooperation from a vested quarter. I will however play in the domestic cricket for a few more years. But I seriously want to help cricket in a different capacity," said Minhazul in a written statement released yesterday.

Source :: The Daily Star