‘Feel sorry for Shakib’

Bangladesh ODI skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza was in one of his usual nonchalant moods when he arrived for a press conference yesterday to field questions regarding the team's upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. It was the last day of training for the players with the team set to board a flight for Sri Lanka today and when the day began, no one would have predicted the grim turn of events that came after the press conference as the ODI skipper was ruled out of the Sri Lanka series following an injury he suffered during a net bowling session.

The Bangladesh players were undergoing a relaxed training session when Mashrafe walked into the press conference with the likes of Tamim Iqbal, Mustafizur Rahman and Co. engrossed in a keepie-uppie session.

There were questions about Mashrafe's fitness throughout the World Cup and it was only natural that he had to field questions about his fitness from the beginning of the press conference.

"I have practiced for two days now without any problems. I am hoping that everything is well," Mashrafe reiterated.

He answered questions about his retirement plans and the team's focus and planning for the upcoming series in Sri Lanka, slated to begin from July 26. The skipper undertook those questions with his natural charisma while maintaining that he had the focus to bounce back after dismal World Cup performances.

It was in the evening following the press conference that news began to surface that Mashrafe had suffered an injury during a net session. He had niggling injuries even prior to the World Cup but it did not affect his ability to play for the Tigers. During the net session, he pulled a hamstring -- an injury that is familiar to the speedster -- and was subsequently ruled out of the Sri Lanka series.

Later Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief selector Minhajul Abedin confirmed that all-rounder Forhad Reza, who was in Chattogram participating in a one-day series against the Afghanistan A team, was included in the 14-member squad as Mashrafe's replacement.

"He pulled his hamstring during training today. We are yet to receive the medical report but at the moment it looks difficult for him to play in the series. We have decided to include Forhad Reza as his replacement," chief selector Minhajul Abedin told The Daily Star yesterday.

A BCB media release later confirmed that Mashrafe sustained a Grade-1 injury.

"He received an immediate MSK ultrasound examination which revealed a Grade-1 injury. It is a recurring injury that could take around three to four weeks to recover. Therefore, he was ruled out from participation in sporting activities for a month," BCB chief physician Debashish Chowdhury was quoted as saying in the BCB release.

Later yesterday, the management decided that Tamim Iqbal would captain the side for the tour. With Shakib Al Hasan allowed a break for the tour's duration, the loss of the skipper will come as a big blow for the Tigers. Since becoming Bangladesh captain back in 2014, this is the first series he will miss through injury. To make matters worse, late yesterday, Mohammad Saifuddin was also ruled out with a lower back injury with fast bowler Taskin Ahmed replacing him in the squad.

Sylhet Strikers skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza pointed at the dropped catches as the reason behind their seven-wicket defeat at the hands of Chattogram Challengers in their opening game of the Bangladesh Premier League 2024 (BPL) in Mirpur on Friday. 

Chattogram were struggling at 59 for the loss of three while chasing the 178-run target but it was Shahadat Hossain Dipu and Najibullah Zadran's unbeaten fifties that sealed a comfortable win.
The duo put together a match-winning 121-run stand for the fourth wicket.

Sylhet, however, have themselves to blame as they dropped Zadran on three occasions that diminished their chances.

"You all saw where we lost the game. We dropped three catches in a very short time. In T20s, if you drop too many catches, it's tough to make a comeback. The wicket was getting better as the dew factor came into play and we needed to grab those opportunities which we were unable to do. In T20s, even the good balls are being hit and when you drop catches, not one but three, then it's always tough to come back," Mashrafe told the media after the game.

Zadran remained not out on 61 off just 30 deliveries, while young Dipu, who made his BPL debut on the day, was unbeaten on 57 off 39 balls as he struck four sixes and as many fours.

"I tried to bat according to the demand of the situation since we lost a few quick wickets. I tried to ensure we didn't lose any more wickets and bat through to the next three-four overs. I was waiting to play my strokes whenever I got it multiple favourable zones, like square leg or down the ground," Dipu said after the match. "Zadran told me that if we could play a few overs initially and get seven-eight runs an over, then once we get set, we will get bad deliveries which we can punish."

Dipu, 21, who was a member of the 2020 ICC U-19 World Cup winning side, played just eight T20s before his BPL debut.
 

Bangladesh batter Imrul Kayes has questioned the player grading process considered when sorting players into categories in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 

Imrul, who played his last international match for Bangladesh in 2018, raised doubts about the criteria on which players are graded, hinting that a lack of fairness looms large in the process. He questioned whether players are graded on reputation or performance ahead of the draft of the 11th edition of the BPL, starting on December 27.

"After seeing grading of the cricketers ahead of the BPL draft, I have been wondering what the grading is based on," A post on Imrul's official Facebook page read on Friday.

"Is it [playing in the] national team, performance in the domestic cricket throughout the year, BPL performance or just names? 

"A cricketer who has not been near cricket throughout this year found his place in 'B' grade but cricketers who were brilliant in the last edition of the BPL were placed in 'C' grade. So, is it just the name or the reputation that is considered when determining the grade of a cricketer?"
Thirty-seven-year-old Imrul, who is one of BPL's most successful captains with three titles under his belt, was placed in 'C' grade where the price cap is Tk 25 lakhs. The left-handed batter was preferred in only five matches in Comilla Victorians' road to the final of the 2024 edition in which he scored 152 runs at a strike-rate of 114.28.

Imrul's dissatisfaction may have come from his former national teammate Mashrafe Bin Mortaza's sorting into 'B' grade. Mashrafe, who turned 41 earlier this month, played his last competitive match in the 2024 Dhaka Premier League for Legends of Rupganj in April. Before that, he came under immense scrutiny for playing in the 2024 BPL in which he took a break after playing just five matches for the Sylhet Strikers. He was captain in all five matches and cited political engagements as the reason for the sabbatical. There was, however, another key element in his short stint; The then 40-year-old, who has struggled with knee injuries throughout his career, was often seen hobbling to complete his strides to the crease while bowling and found it difficult to keep himself in proper shape which put the quality and the competitiveness of the franchise tournament into question.  

Imrul expressed his dissatisfaction at the lack of clarity and performance-based system when it comes to grading players, revealing his own experiences of how he lost his place on the national side in the aftermath of an underwhelming BPL season.

"I could not do well in the 2018-19 edition of the BPL which is why I was dropped from the national team after the West Indies series. Subsequently, when I talked with a BCB official about that, he told me that my performance in the BPL was relatively poor which is why they dropped me. Since I could not perform to my expectations, I accepted that decision without hesitation.

"But I worked very hard to make a comeback to the national side and even scored 442 runs in 13 matches for Chattogram Challengers in the 2019-20 edition of the BPL but, even after such a performance, I was not called up. Moreover, I was not even included in any national team camps. So, does that mean that you are out if you do not perform in the BPL? But even if you perform, it is not being taken into consideration. Will the dire times in our cricket never end?