Sujon ‘a bit surprised’ to see Afif sidelined in ODIs

Former Bangladesh captain and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) director Khaled Mahmud Sujon expressed surprise at the absence of Afif Hossain from the Bangladesh ODI squad for the Sri Lanka series at home.

Afif, who was dropped from both the ODI and T20I side since the New Zealand series last year, will be busy playing the upcoming edition of the Dhaka Premier League, starting from March 9, for Abahani Limited.

The 24-year-old left-hander scored one and 14 in the two T20Is against New Zealand before coming up with a 28-ball 34-run knock in the first ODI against the Kiwis. However, since then Afif was not featured in the remaining matches of the tour and was subsequently sidelined from the squad for the Sri Lanka series.

"Having been the coach of Afif at Abahani for a long time, I must say, I was a bit surprised not to see him in the ODI side. Even in his last ODI, he had scored 38 runs. The question is, why isn't he on the team," Sujon told the media during Abahani's training session in Mirpur on Wednesday.

In the recently concluded Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), Afif had a decent run for Khulna Tigers -- where he scored 278 runs in 12 innings at a strike-rate of 120.86.

"The boy is a hard worker and a very dedicated cricketer. He knows how to fight and is a very good fielder. It's surprising, but the selectors must have taken the decision [of picking the player in Afif's place] after giving it some thought," Sujon concluded.