India vs Bangladesh: Mustafizur Rahman to Miss One-Off Test Against India
The Test will be played in Hyderabad from February 9 and Mustafizur Rahman, who had made quite a fan following in the city, will definitely be missed.
Bangladesh left-arm seamer Mustafizur Rahman's return of competitive cricket hit another roadblock on Wednesday when the left-arm seamer was left out of the squad to play India in the one-off Test series. The bowler, who had made quite a sensational contribution to Sunrisers Hyderabad's Indian Premier League (IPL) success last year, was left out of the contingent since he has not had enough game time post a surgery that has kept him out of the game for the long time now.
The Test will be played in Hyderabad from February 9 and Mustafizur, who had made quite a fan following in the city, will definitely be missed.
The left-armer, who was among the top wicket-takers in the IPL, has become quite the sensation with his cutters, which gave him the 'cutter master' title. He has been replaced by Shafiul Islam in the 15-member team. The Test squad is being captained by Mushfiqur Rahim.
Mushfiqur too was in the wars, as he suffered a head injury during the Test series in New Zealand.
"Although he (Mustafizur) doesn't have any problem medically, he still needs to work on his skill fitness," chairman of selectors Minhajul Abedin said at a press conference in Dhaka on Wednesday. The briefing was also attended by national coach Chandika Hathurusingha.
Apart from the lack of match practice, it evidently was not a good idea to field him straightaway against the formidable Indian batting line-up. The selection committee felt that the bowler would be required more when Bangladesh take on Sri Lanka in a full series.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Liton Das, who recently scored 219 in a first-round match of the Bangladesh Cricket League, was recalled in place of Nurul Hasan.
Apart from Mushfiqur, Imrul Kayes and Mominul Haque were also included in the team after clearing fitness tests.
Squad: Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Mahmudullah Riyad, Imrul Kayes, Shakib Al-Hasan, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Mominul Haque, Sabbir Rahman, Liton Das, Taskin Ahmed, Subashis Roy, Taijul Islam, Kamrul Islam Rabbi and Shafiul Islam.
(With inputs from PTI)