Shakib wanted to play his final Test in front of home crowd in Bangladesh.
Shakib Al Hasan, the legendary Bangladeshi all-rounder, told the media that though he would like to play his final Test at home, the security issues mean that he most likely will not be coming back to Bangladesh.
Shakib was named by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) in the national squad for the first of the two Tests against South Africa at home. This would’ve been his final appearance for Bangladesh in international cricket, having last played against India recently.
But with Shakib Al Hasan refusing to come to Bangladesh over security issues, this will mean that he’ll miss what he has stated will be his final match representing Bangladesh. The 37-year-old announced his retirement from international cricket last month but expressed his desire to play one last Test series on home soil.
Shakib was due to fly back to Dhaka on Thursday.
In addition to his cricketing career, Shakib is a former MP from the party of Bangladesh's ex-leader Sheikh Hasina, who was deposed in an August student movement and fled to India by helicopter.
Shakib is one of several members of Hasina's party who are currently facing murder charges in connection with a deadly police crackdown on protestors during the revolt.
"I was to return home... but now I don't think I can. It is over a security issue, a matter of my own security,” Shakib told broadcaster bdnews24.com.
According to Bangladeshi media, including the broadcaster, Shakib is now in Dubai but aims to come to the United States.
Shakib was in Canada for a domestic Twenty20 cricket event when the dictatorship collapsed, and he has not returned to Bangladesh since.
However, he has participated in the Bangladesh team's excursions to Pakistan and India, which were permitted by the temporary administration formed following Hasina's resignation.