Bangladesh announce squad for Zimbabwe Test

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced 16-member squad for the lone Test against Zimbabwe starting on February 22 in Dhaka.

The 16-member squad has four changes from the team that had toured Pakistan earlier this month for the Test match in Rawalpindi.

The players left out are batsmen Mahmud Ullah and Soumya Sarker and pacers Rubel Hossain and Al-Amin Hossain. Mushfiqur Rahim returns to the side after opting out of the Test against Pakistan. Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz is also back after recovering from an injury while there are recalls for left-arm paceman Mustafizur Rahman and fellow speedster Taskin Ahmed. The uncapped cricketers in the squad are batsman Yasir Ali Chowdhury and fast bowler Hasan Mahmud.

Chairman of BCB National Selection Panel Minhajul Abedin said in the press conference that they believe they picked the best possible Test squad under present circumstances and also insisted that they gave Mahmudullah a break in the longer format of the game.

“It is unfortunate that some players had to miss out but our priority has been to ensure balance and continuity. We felt that Mahmud Ullah needed a break from the red ball. Al-Amin has niggles and that’s why we thought he should be given the time to be fully ready for the limited overs matches where he is more important. Rubel is not part of our red ball plans for the moment. Soumya had applied for a leave and therefore has not been considered,” he said.

16-member squad: Mominul Haque (Captain), Tamim Iqbal Khan, Saif Hassan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mushfiqur Rahim, Md Mithun, Litton Kumer Das, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed Chowdhury, Nayeem Hasan, Ebadat Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Yasir ali Chowdhury

Dhaka/Aminul/AI