Bangladeshi cricket legend Shakib Al Hasan, a former politician aligned with ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has announced his readiness to return from a two-year exile in the United States to face trial on charges including murder. He has stipulated that his return depends on government guarantees for his safety.

Shakib has been living in the United States since August 2024, when Hasina's government was overthrown in a student-led uprising. Now 39 years old, Shakib has not retired from international cricket and expressed hopes to play a farewell series in Bangladesh and represent the country at the 2027 Cricket World Cup, a one-day international tournament.

His potential return poses a test for Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s government regarding the accommodation of figures from the former ruling party. This remains an open question, especially as Hasina herself has announced plans to return to Bangladesh in December despite having been sentenced to death.

In 2024, Asif Mahmud, the then-interim government’s sports adviser, stated that Shakib would receive security comparable to other cricketers but urged him to clarify his political stance to ease public anger over his ties to Hasina’s Awami League. Mahmud also noted that Shakib had been the highest-taxed player for the past decade, had paid all taxes, and that his accounts had been frozen for a year and a half during investigations. He added, "I will give you all the information you need, but if you don’t find anything, just release it."

Shakib’s return and trial will be closely watched as a measure of the current government’s approach to former political allies and the broader political reconciliation in Bangladesh.

Sources