Soon after the completion of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 Auction, Bangladesh allowed all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who was picked by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), has now been allowed to skip a Test and one-day international series against Sri Lanka.
"Shakib gave us a letter stating that he would like to skip the series against Sri Lanka to play in the IPL. We accepted his plea as we don't want to force someone who is reluctant," BCB operations chairman Akram Khan told AFP. Shakib was picked by his former team for Rs 3.2 crore in the auction held in Chennai on Thursday.
This is not the first time a player has agreed to miss international duties to play in the lucrative IPL Twenty20 tournament.
For example, England would be without Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler and others for the start of New Zealand's tour of England in June.
As for Bangladesh's tour to Sri Lanka, they are expected to travel in April and May for a Test series, before playing them again at home in a three-match one-day international series.
The series was originally scheduled for late 2020 in Sri Lanka but was delayed after the two sides failed to agree on the duration of the quarantine period for visiting players.
Bangladesh have already granted Shakib leave to skip next month's forthcoming one-day international and Twenty20 series in New Zealand as he wants to be with his expectant wife in the United States.
Shakib had recently returned back to international cricket after serving a one-year ban for his failure to report multiple corrupt approaches.
He became Player of the Series in his comeback ODI series against West Indies but could play only part of the Test series due to a thigh injury he picked up during the first Test in Chittagong.