Out-of-favour national cricketer Soumya Sarkar made the cut into the 29-member squad of the Bangladesh Tigers, who are set to undergo a fitness camp, scheduled to begin from May 27 to June 05 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, before honing their skills at a separate training camp from June 12 in Dhaka.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had formed Bangladesh Tigers with the sole intention of giving the rehabilitating or out-of-favour national players and the promising youth players the required training during off-seasons.

Notable names in the squad include the likes of Soumya Sarkar, Naim Sheikh and Sabbir Rahman, all of whom had found themselves out of the national team despite having made a promising start to their international careers.

Soumya, once hailed as a key component of the Tigers in white-ball cricket, last played for Bangladesh in the shortest format against Australia during the T20 World Cup's group-stage match in November. The left-handed, elegant stroke-maker, who has 11 fifties and two centuries in 61 ODI matches, last played a one-dayer in New Zealand and had only scored one half-century in his last 15 ODI innings.

While someone like Liton Das has managed to turn the tables after being on the receiving end of a rough patch, similar to the aforementioned players, it will be interesting to see whether Soumya can rediscover himself and fulfil the promise of being the asset for Bangladesh in the long run.  

Bangladesh Tigers squad:

Sadman Islam, Saif Hassan, Zakir Hasan, Mohammad Mithun, Fazle Rabbi, Ashique ul-Alam, Nahidul Haque, Sanjamul Islam, Naim Sheikh, Alamin Hossain, Abu Haider Rony, Mehedi Hassan Rana, Abu Jayed Rahi, Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Naim Islam, Soumya Sarkar, Rony Talukdar, Pinak Ghosh, Zakir Ali Anik, Sajjadul Ripon, Shahin Alam, Sabbir Rahman, Zakirul Ahmed Gem, Abdul Halim, Myshaikur Real, Hasan Mahmud, Rakin Ahmed, Shaikat Ali, Nazmul Islam Apu.