Injury in limelight with WC squad imminent

Ahead of Bangladesh's T20 World Cup squad announcement, there appeared to be very little doubt regarding the make-up of the side, but Taskin Ahmed's late injury has stirred debates the team management will have to settle. The Bangladesh Cricket Board has officially informed that the squad is set to be announced on Tuesday.

Read more

Has the Saifuddin bubble burst?

Yesterday, paceman Hasan Mahmud met with head coach Chandika Hathurusingha and it was learnt that Hasan is set to board the flight to USA to play the three-match T20I series against USA, slated to begin on May 21.

Given Taskin's injury, which he suffered during the fourth T20I against Zimbabwe recently, the pacer will not be playing the three-match series against USA. The Tigers are expected to take a 17-member squad to the USA for the upcoming series and Taskin will accompany the squad. Team management sources are still hopeful that the pacer can recover in time for the World Cup.

"We are still hopeful that we will have some positive news regarding Taskin. If it was too serious, we would have been informed that there is no chance," a member of the selection panel told The Daily Star yesterday.

Taskin had not been allowed NOC to play the Indian Premier League but the pacer had played Dhaka Premier League matches and four of the five T20I matches against Zimbabwe lately. Concerns regarding his injury had seen him sit out the fifth and final T20I in Dhaka which the Tigers lost by eight wickets.

If Taskin does not make a full recovery, it will open the door for Hasan to be included in the World Cup squad.

Changes can be made to the World Cup squad till May 24 and ICC T20WC technical committee's permission is required if any team wants to make a change to the squad after that date.

There are also suggestions from sources that all-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin's inclusion in the World Cup squad is under doubt. Saifuddin picked up eight wickets in the four matches he played in the Zimbabwe series at an economy rate of 9.31. He, however, conceded 55 runs in four overs in the final T20I and team management is believed to be disappointed by his performance.

The all-rounder also got just one opportunity to bat during the series.

Pacer Tanzim Sakib likely has a good chance of making the cut, given doubts over Saifuddin's inclusion. Bangladesh are also mulling over the inclusion of spinner Tanvir Islam, though it remains to be seen whether he gets into the final 15-member squad.

The rest of the squad looks pretty settled. Shakib Al Hasan has made a strong return with the ball in the Zimbabwe series alongside pacer Mustafizur Rahman. Towhid Hridoy was in fine touch in the recent series and was well supported in the middle-order by Jaker Ali Anik and Mahmudullah Riyad.

Mahmudullah, who did not get a place in the 2022 World Cup, has the highest average among Bangladesh's middle-order batters in the last 12 months and his experience will be banked on heading to the global event.

Meanwhile Rishad Hossain, who has featured the most in the Tigers' T20I line-up in the last 12 months, playing 13 out of 16 T20Is and bagging 10 wickets, is being earmarked as the first specialist leg-spinner in a Bangladesh World Cup squad in a while.