Aftab Ahmed and Nafees Iqbal have been out of the national team for quite a while now. Although Aftab last featured in the team in 2010 in the T20 World Cup, the later did not receive any national call-up after 2006. Both of them have been delighted to see Abdur Razzak coming back to the Test squad. During an interview with Daily Manabzamin, they discussed the spinner’s comeback and shared their views on how cricketers should be inspired.

“It looks great to see Razzak return to the team,” Aftab Ahmed said. “His return at this age also reflected the change of many things. Because there was a time when the process of elimination from the team started at the age of 26-27. But it is the evidence that the performers should be given the opportunity.

“Look at the age of Brad Hodge when he returned to the Australia team. There are many cricketers who debuted after getting 30 years old. We are happy to see the change and it looks like if I kept playing for a few more days, maybe I would have got such chance as well.”

Nafees Iqbal said, “Raj Bhai is now 35 years old, it is pleasing to think about his opportunity. We had a custom that cricketers would be dropped from the team as they grew older. Even after being dropped, there was no inspiration to perform, there was no care. That’s the reason I gave up playing. We did not get any inspiration to continue the game.

“Raj Bhai has proved that his ambition is solid when he plays. 500 wickets in home cricket; I would say that he (Razzak) is a great inspiration for those who are still playing, such as Shahriar Nafees, Naeem Islam. This is a message that good performance can lead to opportunities.”

There are many such cricketers who had once played for the Tigers and are still performing in the domestic circuit. Abdur Razzak has set an example for the likes of Tushar Imran, Shahriar Nafees, and Sohag Gazi by returning to the squad.

Regarding the change, Nafees said, “Of course, the change was necessary. But it is also true that many things depend on how the current national-team players are performing. The whole thing is in the hands of the selectors, I should not make any comment on this. But the truth is, it is not only important to give opportunities to performers, they also need inspiration so that they can continue playing - which we did not get.”