Bangladesh's Mahmudullah Announces T20I Retirement After India Series

Bangladesh's long-time all-rounder Mahmudullah is set to retire from Twenty20 Internationals post the three-match series versus India. Debuting in 2007 against Kenya, the 38-year-old's T20I career spanned 17 years and 35 days, making it the third longest after his team-mate Shakib Al Hasan and Sean Williams of Zimbabwe.

Mahmudullah previously stepped away from Test cricket in 2021 but will continue to play in One Day Internationals. Impressively, he was the leading run-scorer for Bangladesh, netting 328 runs in the 2023 Men's World Cup, which took place in India. 

Following in the footsteps of Shakib Al Hasan, who also recently announced his T20I retirement, Mahmudullah has decided to set his sights on the One Day format of the sport. He expressed this decision was influenced by the success he experienced in the last World Cup and his desire to maintain this form for the upcoming three-match ODI series in the West Indies in December, and the Champions Trophy in 2025.

In a reflection on his career, he identified the defeat at the 2016 T20 World Cup against India as the hardest moment, while naming the Nidahas Trophy in 2018 as his favourite. Despite losing the final, Mahmudullah shone by scoring 43 off 18 balls leading Bangladesh to beat the Sri Lankan hosts, reflecting his impressive strike-rate of 157.38. 

In total, in 139 T20I games played, Mahmudullah has scored 2,395 runs with a strike-rate of 117.74 and has taken 40 wickets.