Shakib Al Hasan To Miss The Christchurch Test
Mar 12, 2019 at 10:03 PM
Bangladesh Test and T20I captain Shakib Al Hasan will miss the third and final Test of the ongoing series in New Zealand tour. The 31-year-old all-rounder is recovering from the finger injury.
Shakib Al Hasan was initially in both the ODI and Test squads of the ongoing New Zealand tour. However, before that tour, he faced a finger injury. During the recent 2018/19 Bangladesh Premier League, one of his fingers was fractured. That injury forced him to miss the entire ongoing New Zealand tour.
While Bangladesh lost the three-match ODI series by 3-0, they are now busy in the three-match Test series. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) sent the all-rounder in New Zealand at least to participate in the third Test which is set to begin on 16th March at Christchurch.
However, his recent medical reports have eliminated that choice as he needs a little more time to recover. The BCB Operation’s Committee Chairman Akram Khan confirmed the news on Monday (11th March).
He said, “It is not possible for Shakib to return to the field anymore now for the upcoming Test against New Zealand. As per the medical reports in our hand, Shakib Al Hasan cannot back into field action up to 20th of March. He will be in net practice after that. We will take the decision of his return after that period of time.”
SRH and Bangladesh both are looking at Shakib Al Hasan’s fitness
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has retained him for the upcoming IPL 2019. However, his availability for the new IPL season is still under question. The IPL 2019 will begin on 23rd March while SRH will play their opening game of the tournament against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Kolkata on 24th March.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s next international cricket assignment will be the ODI tri-series in Ireland from 5th to 17th May. Apart from the host Ireland and Bangladesh, Windies will also participate in the tri-series.
After that tour, Bangladesh will participate in the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales. They will begin their World Cup journey on 2nd June against South Africa at The Oval (London). A total of ten teams will participate in this tournament.
Mushfiqur Rahim is recovering well
On the other hand, another Bangladesh senior cricketer Mushfiqur Rahim is also recovering from the injuries. Though the wicketkeeper-batsman played all the ODIs of the ongoing New Zealand tour, he has missed the ongoing Test series due to fitness issues. He is recovering from wrist and rib cage injuries, but the BCB is still in doubt on his availability for the upcoming third Test at Christchurch.
Akram Khan said, “Mushfiqur is recovering well. Although he is in a better shape but we are not still capable of confirming his availability in the last Test against New Zealand. The decision will be taken prior to two to three days of the match. But we are hoping that he will play in the forthcoming Test.”
Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim both are very experienced and crucial players in the present Bangladesh side.