West Indies tour of Bangladesh 2021 News

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) confirmed that ace all-rounder Shakib-Al-Hasan has been diagnosed with a thigh strain. Shakib was carried off the field on the second day of the first Test between Bangladesh and West Indies going on at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhary Stadium in Chattogram. The BCB in an official statement confirmed that it was a new injury and not the same one that the 33-year-old suffered from in the last ODI of the three-match ODI series against the same opposition that concluded last week. “He recovered from his previous groin injury ahead of the first Test and successfully managing to bat in the Bangladesh first innings as well as send down six overs, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has suffered a strain in a different region of his left thigh while fielding on day two,'' said BCB told the press on Friday. In the first innings, Shakib had scored 68 runs before getting out to Rahkeem Cornwall. While in the field he could bowl only six overs in which he gave away 16 runs without taking a wicket. Whether he would take any further part in the game or not is not clear. ''The injury was confirmed by an MRI scan this morning. The BCB medical team will continue to treat and review his progress over the course of the first Test,'' the BCB statement added.

West Indies will be missing six of their first-choice players in the ODI series against Bangladesh starting today and the stand-in captain does not have a potent team line up to win in Bangladesh. However, he is drawing inspiration from India’s historic win in the Gabba Test and the series where the team led by Ajinkya Rahane was missing all of its marquee players and won playing with two net bowlers in the last test. "It is something that we will look to (India's series win in Australia.) It depends on how you play on the day. Obviously, a lot of the guys will be making their debut. Once you have the belief within yourself and within the team that you can win games, these things are achievable. It showed in the India-Australia Tests. We have the same mindset, to play some good cricket starting tomorrow, and hopefully, results can go on our side as well,'' Mohammed told reporters on Tuesday. Notably, Jason Mohammed was asked to lead a side by the Cricket West Indies after the regular skipper Kieron Pollard had pulled out of the tour citing COVID-19 concerns. Apart from Pollard, Jason Holder, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer who all could have walked into the team for the men in maroon in Bangladesh decided to give this series a miss citing Coronavirus pandemic challenges. ''We are just looking to enjoy the series and our first game. It is a big opportunity for all of us here, representing the West Indies. We just want to do well as individuals, but importantly, bring it together and do it for the team. We have a lot of positives. We had a couple of practice sessions and a game (played) within ourselves. The batters looked pretty good I must say. The main thing coming to Bangladesh is a lot of spin. We just have to play it as we see it in the game. Whether we attack, defend or rotate. It is going to be a little bit challenging but I think we prepared well, and we are up for the challenge,'' he concluded. The Windies are touring Bangladesh for a three-match ODI series starting today, followed by a two-match test series that will commence on February 03.

Former Bangladesh Captain and one of the top all-rounders in the cricketing world currently, Shakib Al Hasan has made a comeback into the Bangladesh side after a year, having faced a one year ban due to non-reportage of match-fixing approaches made to him during the ICC World Cup 2020. Along with Shakib, the likes of Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, and Mahedi Hasan have also made it to the 18 member team for the three-match ODI series against West Indies. Out of them, Shoriful left-arm pacer and Hasan Mahmud, a right fast bowler are the first-timers having impressed selectors in the recently concluded Bangabandhu T20 Cup. Speaking about the new entrants, Habibul Bashar, Bangladesh selector said, "Whether they play or not, we want them to adjust in the dressing room quickly. Hasan Mahmud and Mahedi Hasan have played for Bangladesh, but Shoriful is the total newcomer. We want to give them the experience since we believe they are our future.” Former skipper and a Member of Bangladeshi Parliament, Mashrafe Mortaza, fast bowlers Al-Amin Hossain and Shafiul Islam along with young opener Mohammad Naim are the prominent names missing from the team which last played international matches against Zimbabwe in March 2020. Speaking on 33-year-old Shakib’s availability Bashar said, "Shakib and Mushfiqur [Rahim] are our genuine allrounders, which many teams don't have. We can always play with an extra bowler or batsman when we have these two players in the side.” The series between the sides begin with the first ODI at the Sher-E-Bangla Stadium, Mirpur on 20th January. Bangladesh ODI squad: Tamim Iqbal (capt), Shakib Al Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Soumya Sarkar, Taskin Ahmed, Rubel Hossain, Taijul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Mehidy Hassan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mahedi Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam

Bangladesh star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is set to be back on the filed for his country after serving a one year ban for failing to report a corrupt activity to the ICC anti-corruption unit. The all-rounder has been added in the 24-men preliminary squad to take on the West Indies in ODI series starting later this month. Shakib has returned from the United States and thanked the Windies for agreeing to come to Bangladesh for the series that will give him a ‘completely different comeback’ than previous ones he had. Shakib recognised the challenges from the Windies squad, but not putting extra pressure on himself. He said that it will be disappointing if he does not click against the men in maroon on his home grounds while conceding that dominating right from the outset will be a difficult task after such a big break. "I am happy that I am returning to international cricket and there is no pressure on me," said Shakib. "But it won't be easy for me and I will try to get back my old form. If we cannot do well against the West Indies, it will be disappointing,” Shakib said about his comeback. Meanwhile, former skipper Mashrafe Mortaza has been dropped from the preliminary squad, in a major sign of the team looking to move on from a highly successful captain over the past few years. The selection decisions for the upcoming series against West Indies have been taken with the ICC WOlrd Cup 2023 in mind, and hence Mortaza has gone out of favour of the selectors. ''We have full respect for him (Mortaza) as he had given a lot for us. It was a difficult decision but we have to accept reality. 'We have taken this decision talking with the team management and everyone concerned. It's a big opportunity for the player who will replace him in the team. I have spoken with him(Mortaza) and there is no sort of misunderstanding between us. He said he wants to continue playing domestic cricket,'' BCB chief selector Minhajul Abedin said. The touring party of West Indies will arrive in Bangladesh on January 10 and will go through quarantine before playing their first warm-up game on January 18, followed by a three-match ODI series starting January 20 in Dhaka.

Bothe the Test captain Jason Holder and ODI skipper Kieron Pollard, along with eight other prominent players have opted out of the upcoming tour of Bangladesh due to concerns over COVID-19 and personal issues. Shimron Hetmyer, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis and Shai Hope are other players to have opted out of the tour citing Covid-19 as the reason while Fabian Allen and Shane Dowrich have made themselves unavailable over personal concerns. These moves by players will be a setback for both Cricket West Indies and Bangladesh Cricket Board who were involved in serious rounds of discussions to make the series happen in Bangladesh. In the absence of Holder, Kraigg Brathwaite has been awarded the captaincy of the Test team while Jason Mohammed will lead the ODI side. Cricket West Indies has issued a statement in a release that players who have opted out of the tour due to concerns of their health and safety, are entitled to withdraw their names and that their decisions will not impact their contention for future tours. "The CWI COVID-19 policy allows any player to opt-out of selection for an overseas tour, only when based on the player's own safety fears or concerns. Such decisions will not impact their consideration for future selection," Cricket West Indies said in a release. The men in maroon are scheduled to play three ODIs on January 20, 22 and 25 after reaching on January 10. The ODI series will be followed by a two-match Test series with matches at Chattogram and Dhaka from February 3 and February 11 respectively.