Ankon to lead Bangladesh A in four-day match against South Australia

Wicketkeeper-batter Mahidul Islam Ankon has been named captain of the 14-member Bangladesh A squad for the upcoming four-day match against South Australia, scheduled to be held in Darwin from August 28 to 31.

Ankon, who made his Test debut against South Africa in Dhaka last October, will lead the side after already featuring in the ongoing Top End T20 series in Darwin as part of the Bangladesh A T20 squad.

The squad for the longer format features several players currently involved in the T20 campaign, including pacer Hasan Mahmud, top-order batter Saif Hassan, left-arm spinner Rakibul Hasan, off-spinner Nayeem Hasan, and young pacer Ripon Mondol, alongside Ankon.

Opener Anamul Haque Bijoy was dropped from both Bangladesh A's T20 and four-day squads after a string of failures. Since returning to the national fold following a two-year hiatus, he has failed to register a half-century in three Tests. Between a Test against Zimbabwe in April and two against Sri Lanka in June, Bijoy also featured in three 50-over games and two four-day matches against New Zealand A but struggled throughout, finishing with a highest score of just 48.

Another notable omission was Nurul Hasan Sohan. The 31-year-old, who is currently leading Bangladesh A's T20 side on the ongoing Darwin tour, had impressed against New Zealand A in May. The wicketkeeper-batter struck one century each in the 50-over and four-day formats, underlining his consistency in both white-ball and red-ball cricket.

Squad: Mahidul Islam Bhuiyan (Captain), Saif Hassan, Iftakhar Hossain Ifti, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shahadat Hossain Dipu, Amite Hasan, Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Rakibul Hasan, Nayeem Hasan, Hasan Murad, Ripon Mondol, Musfik Hasan, Md Anamul Haque, Hasan Mahmud.