IND vs BAN: Shakib Al Hasan In Contention For India Clash Despite Injury Concerns

Bangladesh National Cricket Team captain Shakib Al Hasan is not yet ruled out of the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023 clash against India National Cricket Team despite his injury concerns.

The Bangladesh team management is hoping that the star all-rounder will recover completely and take the field against the Men In Blue on October 19 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune.

Shakib Al Hasan suffered a left quad injury during the 11th match of World Cup 2023 against Kane Williamson-led New Zealand National Cricket Team at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai on Friday, October 13.

He scored 40 runs in the match and then conceded 54 runs while taking a crucial wicket of Devon Conway. After completing his spell, Shakib didn’t attend the post-match presentation ceremony and he was taken for scans.

Shakib Al Hasan is getting better – Khaled Mahmud

Speaking about Shakib Al Hasan on Monday, October 16, Team director Khaled Mahmud said that the skipper is getting better and is pain-free. Mahmud said:

“Shakib is getting better. He is pain-free. But we will know the full scenario when he hits the nets tomorrow. He will also do running between the wickets. We are hopeful that he can play against India. He worked in a swimming session, and some upper-half work in the gym today. There will be a scan tomorrow which will give us a clearer picture of his situation.”

Khaled Mahmud added that they are hopeful of Shakib Al Hasan being fit for the India clash and the all-rounder is also keen to take part in the match.

“Usually these injuries produce a lot of pain. It is tough to walk around even. Shakib is quite well. It is giving us hope,” he said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.

“Shakib wants to play, so if the situation is that he is 85-90% fit, like he was in the last game after getting injured, we are hopeful too. But it depends on his 100% fitness.”

Mahmud also made it very clear that they have no plans to rush the all-rounder considering the World Cup is a long tournament and the final call will be taken by the physios. He said:

“We don’t want him to miss the rest of the tournament after playing one more game. There are six matches remaining. It is the doctor and physio’s call. We don’t want to trouble him in the long term. If he gets clearance from the physio, he will play.”