Time running out for Mahmudullah?

Mahmudullah Riyad has been excluded from the Bangladesh squad for their first two One-Day Internationals against Ireland to test the bench and give the veteran a rest.

However, this indicates a shift in the cricketer’s fate as this is the only format he currently plays international cricket in, following his retirement from Tests and axing from Twenty20 Internationals.

Mahmudullah’s performance is what has put him in a corner as he has continuously struggled with the bat and has been sloppy on the field. In the three matches against England, he scored 71 runs in total playing 106 deliveries, accumulating a strike rate of 67.

That has been the constant picture for the past year or so. Since the start of 2022, the veteran has been batting at a strike rate of 68.91, often chewing up too many deliveries than the team could bite.

With options such as Towhid Hridoy and Yasir Ali Chowdhury knocking on the door, Mahmudullah now finds himself in unknown waters despite his captain, Tamim Iqbal, refusing to question his position.

The selectors are seemingly on board with the ODI captain as selector Habibul Bashar on Monday insisted on saying that Mahmudullah was rested.

“Mahmudullah is our proven player. He has nothing more to prove. What will happen in the future is for later. We are now just thinking about this series (against Ireland),” he said to the media.

Bashar added, “We have a couple of alternatives in Mahmudullah’s position. That is why we have rested him, nothing else. We want to try out the batting order with new faces.”

For now, Mahmudullah has a seat on the flight to India later this year. Whether that changes in the coming days remains the question, and all eyes on the Ireland series will be keen on finding that answer.