Photo : Collected
Imrul Kayes who officially retired from the Test and first class today said he is leaving this format of cricket with no regrets.
He will, however, continue the white-ball cricket. "What made it difficult for me that I never knew if I'd play the next match or be the part of the next series. But at the end I have no regrets," Kayes told the reporters today after his last first class match at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
"As I said earlier, I'll continue to play in BPL, DPL, and T20s in NCL. My target is to perform well in the upcoming white-ball cricket and enjoy my cricket," he said.
He was unable to get a winning farewell as his team Khulna tasted a nine-wicket defeat to Dhaka inside three days. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) held a farewell ceremony by presenting him with a crest as a token of appreciation.
Kayes represented Bangladesh in Test cricket only 39 times despite being termed as long term prospect. Most of the time in his career, he saw him in and out of the national team. He often rued for not getting opportunity consistently but as he left, he didn't want to focus on those issue anymore.
"What happened with me, it was all destined and so there is no point of talking about this at this moment. I have never claimed that I was perfect but I think I could have performed better. May be I had got more opportunities if I performed well," Kayes said also adding that his career might have taken different flight if the selection process had been more flexible.
Kayes began his Test career in 2008 with a match against South Africa, a match that Bangladesh lost by an innings and 129 runs. Kayes made (10 and 4) 14 across two innings.
His last match was against India at Eden Garden in 2019 when Bangladesh played their only day-night Test till date. Bangladesh also tasted an innings and 46 runs defeat in that match as Kayes scored (4 and 5) 9 runs across two innings.
He had played in 39 Test matches, scoring 1797 runs at an average of 24.28 with a highest score of 150. He scored three centuries and four half-centuries.
In 78 ODIs, he made 2434 runs at an average of 32.02. He has four centuries and 16 fifties under his belt in this format. He played 14 T20 Internationals, scoring 119 runs.
Imrul's first-class journey began two years before his Test debut. In 137 first-class matches, he put up 7,930 runs at an average of 33.74, including 20 centuries and 27 half-centuries.
"When I started my first class career, I've never imagined making it this far," Said Kayes.
"Representing Bangladesh was the most beautiful chapter of my life, no matter how many I scored. No matter, whether it's one Test, fifty, or a hundred. What is important is that I represented Bangladesh in Test cricket. When I made debut in first-class cricket in 2006, I never thought I'd play so many Tests," he said.
Kayes however plans to settle in Australia after his career as his family stays there.
"Nowadays, I mostly reside in Australia because of my family who stays there. I'm currently playing Premier Division cricket for a local Australian team. I'm also planning to start a coaching academy there," he informed.
Messenger/JRTarek
