Liton, Shoriful axed as BCB announces provisional squad for Champions Trophy
Batter Liton Das and pacer Shoriful Islam were axed over poor form as Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Sunday announced a 15-member provisional squad for next month's Champions Trophy.
Liton and Shoriful have both been in poor form of late, failing to find form in either format or cricket. Liton had scored just 13 runs in his last seven ODI innings, and has struggled for runs in BPL too, except for one good knock in his team's last match.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Speaking about Liton's exclusion, chief selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu told reporters that Liton in recent times hasn't invoked the kind of confidence he used to in the past.
He said that opposition teams have worked out Liton's weaknesses, adding that they hope he can make a strong comeback to the side.
Lipu also felt that Tanzid Tamim and Soumya Sarkar have done well in the past to choose them among the three opening batter options, with Parvez Emon being the other.
Najmul Hossain Shanto, returning from an injury, will lead the side while Mehedi Hasan Miraz will act as his deputy.
Mushfiqur Rahim and Towhid Hridoy have also returned from injuries following the West Indies tour while Mustafizur Rahman returns from a leave.
Teams can make changes to the provisional squad till February 18. The Champions Trophy will be played in Pakistan and UAE from February 19 to March 9.
There was no place for Shakib Al Hasan, whose bowling has been deemed illegal by the England and Wales Cricket Board, the suspension covering global and domestic tournaments.
Tamim Iqbal has recently confirmed he has retired from international cricket.
This will be the first time in 18 years Bangladesh will play an ICC event without both Tamim and Shakib.
Bangladesh squad:
Najmul Hossain Shanto (C), Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Tamim, Parvez Emon, Mushfiqur Rahim, Towhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah, Jaker Ali, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasum Ahmed, Tanzim Sakib, Nahid Rana.
Group Stage Fixtures:
20 February - Bangladesh vs India, Dubai
24 February - Bangladesh vs New Zealand, Rawalpindi
27 February - Pakistan vs Bangladesh, Rawalpindi
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