Changes galore for Zim ODIs
"You must ask him how he felt after bowling in the nets. I think he bowled okay. He does have enough of it [skill]."
Ottis Gibson
Bangladesh bowling coach
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) named uncapped ODI players Afif Hossain and Naim Sheikh in the squad the first two ODIs against Zimbabwe while skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza returned to lead the side after missing the last ODI series against Sri Lanka due to injury.
There were changes galore to the side that played in Bangladesh's last ODI series, with seven players dropped from the 16-member squad that was named for the Sri Lanka ODIs in July, 2019. But although there might appear to be big changes, some players were not in serious contention for a place in the side.
Soumya Sarkar, who had hit a fifty in Bangladesh's last ODI in Sri Lanka, was one of the notable omissions in the squad. Shafiul Islam retained his place in the side but pacers Rubel Hossain and Taskin Ahmed were excluded after Mashrafe and Mohammad Saifuddin returned, both having missed the Sri Lanka tour due to injury.
Paceman Al Amin Hossain had returned to the T20 and Test sides last year during the India tour and, having impressed selectors with the opportunity, he made it into the ODI side for the Zimbabwe series after last playing an ODI for the Tigers in 2015.
Regular opener Liton Das also returned to the squad while opener Anamul Haque, middle-order batsman Sabbir Rahman and all-rounder Farhad Reza were left out. Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam were retained.
"We had to make certain adjustments to the last ODI series we had played in as a number of cricketers were unavailable due to various reasons, but I am happy that we now have a fit pool of players to select from," chief selector Minhajul Abedin was quoted as saying in a BCB press release. "[Nazmul Hossain] Shanto's current form in international and domestic cricket gets him into the team while Naim and Afif are also part of our long-term plan for the shorter version."
Nazmul makes a return to the ODI side, having last played back in 2018 during the Asia Cup, while opener Naim had played well in his T20I debut series against India. Afif had left good impressions on debut during the tri-nation T20I series against Zimbabwe and Afghanistan last year at home.
The first ODI is on March 3, while the second is on March 5.
Squad
Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (Capt), Tamim Iqbal, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Taijul Islam, Afif Hossain, Naim Sheikh, Al-Amin Hossain, Mohammad Saifuddin, Shafiul Islam, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Mustafizur Rahman.
In: Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Mohammad Saifuddin, Liton Das, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Afif Hossain, Naim Sheikh, Al-Amin Hossain.
Out: Anamul Haque, Sabbir Rahman, Soumya Sarkar, Rubel Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Farhad Reza.
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