Uncertain but on the mend

The recent camps and tours of Bangladesh have been marred by the injury woes of a number of national players. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief physician Dr. Debashish Chowdhury yesterday informed The Daily Star on the latest conditions of Shakib Al Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Imrul Kayes and Mohammad Saifuddin -- all of whom are suffering from various injuries. The chief physician also mentioned that the national team management has chalked out a plan for all the injured players regarding their recovery and rehabilitation period ahead of the upcoming Ireland tour and the World Cup beginning from May 31 this year in England and Wales.

SHAKIB AL HASAN

Nature of injury: The Bangladesh Test and T20I captain sustained a left little finger fracture while playing for Dhaka Dynamites in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) final earlier this month. The ace all-rounder missed the three-match ODI series in New Zealand due to the injury.

Update: Shakib is currently on a three-week rest period and has been doing the required exercises in the meantime. An X-ray will be conducted in the first week of March and if the result is positive Shakib will start functional sports activities. However, in reality, the chances are quite slim that he will make it to New Zealand for the three-match Test series that starts from February 28.

TASKIN AHMED  

Nature of injury: Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed suffered from an ankle injury during his BPL side Sylhet Sixers' last group match earlier this month. The pacer was also ruled out of the New Zealand tour due to his injury.

Update: Taskin has completed his first three-week observation period and it seems that the tall pacer is healing better and is also able to lift weights. He will now start his three-week rehabilitation programme and then another review will be done on his situation. In total, it will take around a month and a half for him to return to sporting activities. It is however difficult to say how long it will take for him to recover fully as it remains to be seen how the 23-year-old copes with the injury.

IMRUL KAYES 

Nature of injury: Left-handed opener Imrul has long been suffering from a groin strain, which also plagued him during the recently concluded BPL which ended with his side Comilla Victorians emerging as champions.

Update: To the possible relief of Bangladesh -- who have often used him as a stop-gap option when others were injured -- as well as Imrul's Dhaka Premier League (DPL) side Gazi Group, who retained the experienced player, the left-hander is expected to be available for competitive cricket from the second week of March. However, he will not be playing the ongoing inaugural DPL T20 tournament.

MOHAMMAD SAIFUDDIN

Nature of injury: All-rounder Saifuddin was impressive in the recently concluded three-match ODI series in New Zealand but is said to have faced slight problems in his arm while throwing during the tour.

Update: As a precautionary measure, Saifuddin will not be playing the ongoing DPL T20 for his side Abahani Limited. However, the all-rounder is expected to play the traditional 50-over version of the DPL.