Mohammad Nafees Iqbal Khan or Nafis Iqbal was born 31 January 1985. He better known as Nafees Iqbal, is a former Bangladeshi international cricketer. He played as a right-handed opening batsman, and was a part-time right-arm medium pace bowler.
Nafees Iqbal is not one of nature’s shrinking violets. Nafees made his international debut against the same opponents in the 50-over format, but failed to even get into double digits in both the matches. Against a top-notch South African side, when Bangladesh got bundled out for 93, Nafees top-scored with 40 batting at No. 3. This knock helped him to receive a maiden Test call-up against New Zealand. Opening the innings in the second essay, Nafees scored 49 runs – highest score in the innings – against a potent Kiwi bowling attack.
After slapping a giddy century for Bangladesh A in Dhaka, he dismissed England’s spinners as “ordinary”, an assessment that attracted more column inches than the innings itself. Had he not been about to lead Bangladesh’s Under-19 team in Pakistan, he might have had the opportunity to expand on that statement in the subsequent Test series. Instead, he waited for a late summons to the one-day squad, and made his debut in front of his home fans at Chittagong. Nafis Iqbal Test debut followed the following year, and in January 2005 he produced his maiden hundred, an invaluable match-saving 121 against Zimbabwe at Dhaka, which secured Bangladesh their maiden series victory, after making 56 in the historic win at Chittagong. Indifferent form after that cost Nafees his place, and he did not feature in the Tests against Australia in April 2006: he had lost his one-day place nearly a year before, after a poor start to the NatWest Series in England.
Nafis Iqbal was predominantly a leg-side player with limited strokes against the quick. He liked to use his feet against the spinners and was strong square of the wicket. With time his weaknesses were exploited. The form dipped evident by the string of low scores and Nafees Iqbal was eventually dropped from the side. He last played for Bangladesh in 2006 in a Test match. In 2016, Nafees was named as Khulna Titans’ Team Manager.