Bijoy thanks BCB for World Cup opportunity 

Bangladesh batter Anamul Haque Bijoy expressed his gratitude to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) for naming him as a replacement for the injured skipper Shakib Al Hasan for Bangladesh's final group-stage match of the World Cup against Australia in Pune on Saturday.  

Shakib was ruled out due to a fracture of the index finger of his left-hand sustained during Bangladesh's match against Sri Lanka on November 6.

Bijoy made a return to the national side in the Asia Cup earlier in September as a replacement for Liton Das following a absence of almost a year. He scored an 11-ball four-run knock in Bangladesh's final Super Four match against India and was left out of the squad for the subsequent New Zealand series at home. 

"I want to thank them (the BCB). They've always been supporting me. I hope I can use their prayers and turn them into action on the field. I hope they keep praying for me. I will try to apply myself on the back of my preparations," Bijoy said on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old was gearing up to play the fifth round match for Khulna Division in the ongoing National Cricket League where he scored two fifties and a century in four matches but a late call will now see him join the Bangladesh squad, who have qualification for the 2025 Champions Trophy at stake.  

Bijoy deemed the unlikely call as God's will and maintained the tradition of Bangladesh players banking on prayers for on-field performances. He also read lines from the same old script that Bangladesh players often use when explaining their targets ahead of an event when he said he wanted to contribute to the team's cause.

"It was actually God's will which is why perhaps I am going. These things keep happening to cricketers," he said.

"It's a matter of good fortune to be able to go to a World Cup. Even if it's for the last match, it is a big thing. I want to contribute to the team as much as I can; By taking catch or with the bat if given a chance. I want to make the team win," he added.