Veteran Pacer Jahanara Alam Approaches Board for Possible National Return Before Retirement
The former Bangladesh women's captain must pass fitness tests and prove herself in domestic cricket before selectors can consider her for a comeback.
Jahanara Alam, the experienced right-arm medium pacer and former captain of the Bangladesh women's team, has contacted the Bangladesh Cricket Board to discuss the possibility of ending her self-imposed break and returning to competitive cricket. The 33-year-old has made it clear that she wants to represent the national side once more so that she can eventually retire while still playing for the country rather than stepping away during her current absence.
Alam last pulled on the national jersey in December 2024 during the three-match home T20I series against Ireland. In January 2025 she informed the board that she needed time away, citing mental fatigue, and subsequently relocated to Australia. While overseas she continued to play club cricket and maintained a training routine, but she remained outside both the Bangladesh national set-up and the domestic circuit. Her absence later drew wider attention after she raised serious allegations of sexual harassment against members of the women's team management. The board responded by forming an independent inquiry committee; the matter was investigated and subsequent actions were taken on the basis of the committee's findings.
Rafiqul Islam Babu, chairman of the BCB's women's wing, has confirmed that Alam recently reached out and expressed her desire to resume playing at both domestic and international level. According to the board official, she stressed that she has kept herself fit precisely so she can finish her career on the field for the national team. Babu indicated that the request is under review and that any pathway back would follow the established process for players who have taken a break. That process requires her first to clear formal fitness tests and then to perform in domestic tournaments before selectors can evaluate her for national consideration.
Several domestic competitions are approaching, and Alam would need to decide which events to enter in order to build a case for selection. Her international career spans more than a decade. She made her ODI debut in 2011 and has taken approximately 48 wickets in the 50-over format alongside roughly 60 in T20Is.
She has captained the side, appeared in multiple Asia Cup campaigns and World Cup tournaments, and at various points served as one of the more seasoned seam-bowling options available to the team. Earlier in her career she demonstrated an ability to rebuild form through domestic cricket; after being left out in 2023 she returned to the national reckoning by finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the Dhaka Women's Premier League.
A potential return would still face practical hurdles. Selectors would need to assess her current pace, accuracy and match readiness against the requirements of the present squad, which is managing a busy schedule that includes recent tours and upcoming series.
The board has stated that the door remains open for any player who meets performance and fitness standards, while also emphasising that past controversies or personal issues cannot override the need for competitive form. For Alam the immediate steps are straightforward: satisfy the fitness protocols and produce results in domestic matches. Only after those stages would the selectors be in a position to decide whether her experience and skill still justify a place in the national group.
The development arrives at a time when Bangladesh women's cricket is working to strengthen its pace resources following a recent whitewash tour of Australia. Whether Alam can complete the required steps and earn another opportunity remains uncertain, but her stated intention has placed the prospect of a late-career return on the board's agenda and opened a fresh discussion about how experienced players who step away can re-enter the system.