The Bangladesh cricket team has had a lot of recent success, but its head coach Chandika Hathurusingha will need to start thinking about how they can beat the hurdles that are yet to come as soon as they resume training under the lights later today after a lengthy vacation.
Even though they are scheduled to leave for India the day after tomorrow, Bangladesh is one of just two countries who have not yet named their roster for the next ICC World Cup. The tournament starts in only one week.
Under the condition of anonymity, a source from inside the BCB said that the team may be unveiled during the innings break of today’s third one-day international match against New Zealand.
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are still making last-minute calculations over the contingent for the tournament that will continue for almost a month and a half. This is in contrast to the majority of teams, who revealed their 15-member squads well in advance of the final cut-off date (September 27). And considering the circumstances that transpired this morning, it is possible that Bangladesh may have a more difficult time selecting their final 15 players.
Shakib is interested in resigning from his position as Bangladesh’s World Cup captain.
While Sri Lanka’s postponement is entirely attributable to the fact that key players like Wanindu Hasaranga have been sidelined with injuries and are in the process of recovering from those injuries, Bangladesh is apparently still unsure of the team combination. This is due to the fact that a number of players are not in good form, and there is also debate regarding whether or not the team should rely on experience rather than adding new players.
However, it was revealed this morning that the team’s captain, Shakib Al Hasan, did not want to continue in his job as captain because he did not want to take any players who were only partially fit to the 10-team competition in India. These discoveries have generated even more doubt.
The unconfirmed report that the former team captain Tamim Iqbal had a conversation with the team management about how he wasn’t sure whether he was healthy enough to play all nine matches in India circulated online Friday night.
Also late yesterday night, BCB president Nazmul Hassan Papon convened a meeting in the wee hours of the morning with coach Chandika Hathurusingha and team captain Shakib, both of whom had just arrived from Australia a few hours earlier.
Due to the fact that none of the three individuals involved talked to the media, it was impossible to assess the result of the encounter.
Before everything went to crap in Bangladesh cricket, it was believed that the roster would consist of five seamers, including the promising teenager Tanzim Hasan Sakib, four spinners, of whom two would be all-rounders, and two wicketkeeper-batters. While all-rounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz is being considered as an option for a backup opening batter, there will be no room for young Tanzid Hasan Tamim or anyone else in that position because the veteran Mahmudullah Riyad will almost certainly be a part of the squad. This will mean that Tamim and Liton Das are the only specialist openers who will be able to earn spots in the team.
Regardless of whether or whether the 15 players who have already been selected stay the same, the situation with Tamim and Shakib will undoubtedly shake up a squad that is already having trouble finding its form and its confidence.