Is mental fatigue hurting Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan?

'He always said one thing that he is not enjoying, unfit and not ready'

'Since he's 'mentally fatigued and physically  stressed', after discussion with the CEO and the president, we have decided to give him rest from all forms of cricket till April 30'

Bangladesh premier all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been granted a break from all forms of cricket till April 30 to deal with 'mental stress' and 'fatigue', ruling him out of the upcoming South Africa series that runs till April 8.

The 34-year-old, who was not picked by any of the IPL franchises, was initially named in the ODI and Test squads for the South Africa tour.

But following his comment that he felt like a 'passenger' in the team after Bangladesh's recent series against Afghanistan, where he made 74 runs and took seven wickets in three ODIs and two T20Is, the country's cricket board (BCB) decided to give him a much-needed break.

"He's mentally stressed and fatigued. He told me at this point of time, he is not enjoying any form of cricket," BCB cricket operation chairman Jalal Yunus told reporters on Wednesday.

"He always said one thing that he is not enjoying, unfit and not ready. Since he's 'mentally fatigued and physically stressed', after discussion with the CEO and the president, we have decided to give him rest from all forms of cricket till April 30."

The nearly two-month break would mean that Shakib will also miss the Dhaka Premier League, where he was expected to play for Mohammedan Sporting.

"Shakib is an all-rounder, an important player for us. We have the World Cup coming up, We want him for one more big series and if a player wants to skip and not enjoying, we want to give him complete rest and spend time with his family."

On Sunday, Shakib cooked up a storm saying he is feeling stressed and not physically and mentally fit to play the South Africa series as Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hassan questioned his commitment.

"I think it is logical to think that if he was in a poor physical and mental state, he wouldn't have given his name in the IPL ... But he went ahead with it. So, does it mean that if he got his IPL contract, he would have said the same thing?" Hassan questioned.

Shakib had last month pulled out of the Test series in New Zealand and since 2017 the premier all-rounder has featured in 15 of the 33 Tests played by Bangladesh.