Shakib Al Hasan Returns As Bangladesh Name 18-Men Squad For West Indies ODIs

Champion all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has made a return to the Bangladesh side for the upcoming ODI series against West Indies as the national selectors confirmed an 18-member squad that will mark the return of the Asian Tigers to international cricket following a 9-month coronavirus-enforced hiatus.

This will be Shakib Al Hasan’s first international assignment ever since he was banned by the ICC in 2019 for his failure to report a corrupt approach on two separate occasions.

The all-rounder has since then featured in domestic tournaments organized by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).

Apart from Shakib Al Hasan, pacers Taskin Ahmed and Rubel Hossain have made a comeback into the national set-up while the likes of Al Amin Hossain and Naeem Sheikh have been omitted. Former captain Mashrafe Mortaza had already been ignored from the preliminary 24-men squad alongside Shoriful Islam.

Off-spinner Mahadi Hasan and the pace duo of Hasan Mahmud and Shoriful Islam are the three uncapped players in the 18-member squad. This will also be Tamim Iqbal’s maiden stint as ODI captain.

“Naturally we are delighted to have Shakib Al Hasan back in the squad as we all know he is a game-changer and we are expecting him to return to his best very soon. We have picked Rubel Hossain as he bowled well in the domestic tournament while Taskin was injured earlier but now as he is fit and the way he is bowling, we felt that he deserves a chance,” Chief selector Minhajul Abedin told CricBuzz.

“We have said earlier that the provisional squad was the reflection of our plan of action and that is why we could not include Mashrafe in it. Mahedi has been performing really well for the last two years and we feel it is the right time for him to get some exposure. As far as the pace duo is concerned both of them are bowling really fast and that impressed us a lot which paved their way into the squad,” he added.

”We are looking forward to seeing how Tamim handles the team and we are confident he would do well considering the experience he has in international cricket. It’s a new beginning for him as well as for the team considering we have prepared the squad with an eye on the future.” he said.

The three-match ODI series between Bangladesh and West Indies will kickstart from January 20 at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka.

Bangladesh’s 18-men squad for the three-match ODI series vs West Indies:

Tamim Iqbal (C), Shakib Al Hasan, Najmul Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Rubel Hossain, Taijul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Saiffudin, Mahadi Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mithun, Litton Das, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Soumya Sarkar