Bangladesh, on Tuesday, surprised one and all with their squad selection. They left out the off-spinner Mehidy Hasan for an initial couple of games of the tournament, which was a massive shock to the youngster. Meanwhile, Shakib Al Hasan will take the reigns to lead Bangladesh in the series.
The right-handed experienced fast bowler Mashrafe Mortaza isn’t part of the upcoming series, which means that Bangladesh has to rely on the young fast bowlers to do the job for the team. The lack of Mehidy Hasan will put further pressure, as he has been one of the vital players in limited-overs.
Saifuddin is fit to play:
Hasan had a poor outing in the ODI series in Sri Lanka, which Bangladesh lost 0-3. In the three matches he played in that series, Hasan could scalp only two wickets. Even in the home T20I series against West Indies in December last year which Bangladesh lost, the 21-year-old could pick just one wicket in the three matches he played.
“We have formed this squad looking forward and there is no reason to believe that those who couldn’t make it into the squad won’t have a chance in the upcoming matches,” chief selector Minhajul Abedin told Cricbuzz. “We have only named a squad for the opening two games.
“Saifuddin is fit to play. The physio said that he will be able to take the load of shorter version cricket and his back pain is not constant. He is already bowling and we need to be playing him while managing his workload.”
With a T20 World Cup scheduled in Australia next year, Bangladesh have opted for a few new faces in the squad. Mahedi Hasan and Afif Hossain are making an international return, while Yeasin Arafat, the right-arm fast-medium bowler, gets a maiden call-up. Mohammad Saifuddin also returns from injury.
The tri-series will begin with the opening match between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe on Friday in Mirpur.
Here is the squad:
Shakib Al Hasan (c), Liton Kumar Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Taijul Islam, Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman, Yeasin Arafat.