Wednesday, October 16, 2024

Drama puts Tigers’ squad on hold

Chief selector Akram Khan is already facing a severe first spell as he prepared to name the Bangladesh team for the forthcoming tour of Zimbabwe.
After the 23-member skills training camp under Sarwar Imran ended yesterday, it was expected that the announcement of the squad will be made today with one new face, all-rounder Nasir Hossain, all set to become the newest Tiger. But Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) could not confirm the exact date of the press conference which would declare the team.
It was learned that BCB chief AHM Mustafa Kamal was displeased at the way the team was given to him just for approval. The delay with the announcement has created speculation that the team selected by Akram & co may not survive and some changes could be made to the final squad. Previously, it was common practice for the board president to approve the team submitted by the selectors.
There has also been confusion since last evening in regards to the submission of the team by the selectors to the BCB president via the cricket operations committee with staffs and directors spawning different versions. One reliable source said the selectors had delivered the signed copy yesterday afternoon while it was also heard that they gave it in the evening. This further highlights the utter lack of coordination in the cricket board.
No matter how it is being dealt with, Akram is facing the same difficulty that Rafiqul Alam had to put up with when outside interference was prevalent when picking teams. It complicates matter given that the new selection panel already have to face on-field intricacies even against a lesser-ranked side.
Though Zimbabwe are returning to Test cricket after six years and the Tigers have enjoyed a huge advantage over their awaiting hosts during this period, Akram with new selectors Minhazul Abedin and Habibul Bashar had a lot more to contend with while selecting the team and it doesn’t only include poor form but also a genuine lack of depth for them to choose from.
Batsmen Imrul Kayes, Mahmudullah Riyad and to some extent Shahriar Nafees and paceman Shafiul Islam have made themselves automatic choices alongside Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal though the rest have question marks next to their name as a Test player and some as an ODI player.
Junaed Siddiqui, the left-hander who was persisted with by the previous selection panel, have made a strong case for a return for the Test match. He has worked his way through the tours of South Africa (for Bangladesh A) and the single National Cricket League game he played after being dropped for the Australia series.
Mohammad Ashraful could also find himself back in the national team due to mainly a lack of choices in the No 4 position. He has averaged 11.47 over the last two years in that position but since Rokibul Hasan hasn’t grabbed his chances, the selectors have little choice but to revert back to the faltering Ashraful. Giving Riyad a chance up the order would depend on Shakib though the selectors are averse to giving the all-rounder a promotion.
But all three, (Nafees, Rokibul and Ashraful) could be included in the squad so that the captain and new coach Stuart Law could gauge all the options in their bid to fill up a faltering middle-order.
Riyad, in fact, could be kept at No 8 once again due to the other problem faced by the selectors. With Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (knee) and Shahadat Hossain (toe) injured, Shafiul and Rubel would have to carry the burden and there is serious talk of including a third seamer in the playing eleven at the Harare Sports Club ground and it is likely that Robiul Islam could be picked.
Akram would have wanted to experiment against a weaker opposition but with little preparation, unsatisfactory forms and injuries, it has turned into his first real trial as the chief.

-With The Daily Star input

Related News

Olly Stone dashes home from Pakistan tour to get married

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Olly Stone is set to fly back to England from the Pakistan tour on Wednesday for his wedding, making his participation in the second Test unlikely. With the match scheduled just days after his wedding, Stone’s return in time to be considered for selection is uncertain. Though the exact date of ... Read more

Mahmudullah to retire from T20Is after India series

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Veteran all-rounder Mahmudullah has announced that he will retire from the T20 Internationals after the ongoing series against India. The 39-year all-rounder made this announcement at a press conference prior to the second T20I against India in Delhi on Tuesday. Mahmudullah has played 139 T20Is for Tigers which is the highest ... Read more

Mahmudullah Riyad set to retire from T20I cricket

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh have played 177 T20Is and Mahmudullah Riyad has been part of 140 of them. The veteran cricketer is now expected to announce a decision to bring the curtain down on his T20I career. Riyad is set to make an announcement, which could even be due in today’s pre-match press conference ... Read more

Sanath Jayasuriya named full-time head coach of Sri Lankan cricket team

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Sanath Jayasuriya has officially been named the head coach of the Sri Lanka national cricket team, stepping up from his interim role that he held since June. His appointment comes in the wake of Chris Silverwood’s resignation following Sri Lanka’s disappointing performance in the recent T20 World Cup. At 55 years ... Read more

Tigresses batting struggle lead to defeat against England in women’s T20 World Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh Women’s team suffered a 21-run defeat against England Women in the sixth match of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah on Saturday. Earlier, Nigar Sultana Joty’s Tigresses ended their 16-match losing streak in the mega event after taking down debutants Scotland. Against Heather Knight’s ... Read more

Nahida Akter becomes first Bangladesh woman to take 100 wickets in WT20Is

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Nahida Akter has become the first Bangladesh woman to take 100 wickets in Twenty20 Internationals, as her side secured a 16-run victory over Scotland in their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup opener in Sharjah today. The left-arm spinner, who took the final wicket of the match, reached the milestone in her ... Read more

Tigers secure historic Test sweep over Pakistan, win series 2-0

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh has carved out a remarkable achievement in cricket, securing 2-0 Test series win against Pakistan on their own soil. Tigers completed 2-0 clean sweep over Pakistan with a six-wicket win in the second and final Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today. This is the first time the Tigers have ... Read more

Women’s T20 World Cup set to move from Bangladesh to UAE

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup is likely to be moved from Bangladesh to the UAE, according to indications from the recent International Cricket Council Board meeting, which took place virtually on Tuesday, reports Cricbuzz. The tournament is scheduled from October 3 to 20. That the global event cannot be played ... Read more

Gautam Gambhir named India head coach

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Star of India’s title-winning campaign in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2011, former opener Gautam Gambhir has been named as the new head coach of the India men’s cricket team. He will take over from Rahul Dravid after a successful ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 campaign. The 42-year-old’s most ... Read more

T20 World Cup: India end 11-year-drought for ICC crown after Barbados thriller

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com India came back from behind to beat South Africa by seven runs in the final and become the unbeaten champions of the T20 World Cup 2024 at Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday. It was the first time a team won the tournament without losing a single game. It was South ... Read more

ICC punishes Tanzim Sakib for ‘inappropriate physical contact’ against Nepal captain in T20 World Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh seamer Tanzim Hasan Sakib has been fined 15 percent of his match fee for his code of conduct violation on Sunday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) stated in a press release. The incident took place in the third over of the Nepal chase, where amidst a spirited spell Tanzim had ... Read more

Kane Williamson steps down as captain

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Kane Williamson has stepped down as the skipper of the New Zealand white-ball teams and has also declined a central contract from the board for the 2024-25 season following the country’s devastating performance in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA. “Helping push the team forward across the ... Read more

Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka by 2 wickets in T20 World Cup thriller

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Towhid Hridoy’s aggression and Litton Das’ calmness backed up the heroic effort from the Bangladesh bowlers and handed Sri Lanka a two-wicket defeat in a tense T20 World Cup game at the Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Dallas. With the win over Sri Lanka, Bangladesh now are a better-placed team of ... Read more

India crush Bangladesh in final warm-up

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh suffered a crushing 60-run defeat to India in their final official T20 World Cup warm-up match at the Nassau County Cricket Stadium in New York on Saturday. Mahmudullah was the only Bangladesh batter who looked comfortable on a difficult wicket and a big ground. While the others huffed and puffed, ... Read more

Saikat to officiate in T20 World Cup opener

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid Saikat will become the first Bangladeshi umpire to officiate at an ICC Men’s T20 World Cup when he stands in the tournament opener between USA and Canada, said an ICC press release on Wednesday. Saikat, 47, took charge of five matches at last year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World ... Read more

BCB announce World Cup squad with Taskin

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Taskin Ahmed, after concerns with a rib injury, has been included in the Bangladesh national team’s 15-man squad for the forthcoming T20 World Cup in West Indies and USA as the Bangladesh Cricket Board announced on Tuesday. This is also the squad for Bangladesh’s three-match T20I series against USA later this ... Read more

Tigers to tour West Indies in November

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh national cricket team is scheduled to tour the West Indies in November to feature in two Tests, three one-day internationals, and as many T20Is, revealed the Windies Cricket Board in a press release on Saturday. The first Test will begin on November 22 in Antiga, while the second and ... Read more

ICC bans Nasir for two years

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh all-rounder Nasir Hossain has been for two years by the International Cricket Council after he accepted three charges of breaching the Emirates Cricket Board’s Anti-Corruption Code. The charges against Nasir were in relation to the 2021 Abu Dhabi T10 League. Six months of his two-year ban is suspended, meaning the ... Read more

New Zealand win 3rd T20I to level series 1-1 with Bangladesh

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com New Zealand beat Bangladesh by 17 runs (DLS method) in the third and final T20I of the three-match series against Bangladesh at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on Sunday. The win made sure the hosts level the series 1-1 after losing the first match, and the second contest being called ... Read more

New Zealand-Bangladesh second T20I called off due to persistent rain

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The second T20I between New Zealand and Bangladesh of the three-match series at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui has been called off due to persistent rain. New Zealand were 72-2 after 11 overs when the umpires decided the rain was too heavy to continue the proceedings. Shoriful Islam was impressive ... Read more