Asia Cup 2018: Khaled Mahmud Rules Out Injury Concerns
At a time when all the teams are providing finishing touches to their preparation for the Asia Cup, Bangladesh are nervously waiting on the fitness news of Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and Nazmul Hossain Shanto. However, their manager Khaled Mahmud has ruled out any serious injury concerns.
Shakib, one of their batting as well as bowling mainstays, is nursing an injury to his left little finger since January. He had previously said he wanted to undergo surgery during the Asia Cup but then decided against it. Star opener Tamim Iqbal has a mildly swollen right ring finger while youngster Nazmul Hossain Shanto has a dislocated right index finger. Both Tamim and Shanto suffered their injuries during the preparatory camp leading up to the Asia Cup.
Snaps of the opening day of preliminary camp ahead of the ACC Asia Cup UAE 2018. pic.twitter.com/YlYglrDs8y
— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) August 27, 2018
On Thursday, the trio took part in a short training session while the rest of their teammates remained confined to the hotel rooms.
And later, Khaled Mahmud insisted that injury would not affect the Tigers while saying that the trio is keen to play.
“I think they are keen to play – they want to do well. I don’t think injuries will have a big effect on us,” Mahmud said on Thursday.
Mahmud further said that experienced Shakib knows how to deal with the pain of the injury.
“I talked to Shakib in the morning. He said there is some pain, it’s swollen and a little bent. He also said that medication reduces the pain. I think the caliber of player Shakib is and the experience he has had, he has perhaps played many matches with such small injuries because they play for the team and the country.
“It’s not as bad though and the recovery has been good. I hope that they will play with full commitment,” he added.
While Shakib, Tamim and Nazmul spent some time at the ground, Mahmud denied it being a fitness test for the trio.
“Not really [it was nothing like a fitness test]. They could not practice much because Tamim came late, Shanto [Nazmul] was not able to bat properly because of finger pain.
“It was the same with Shakib. However, while the rest of the team were resting, they went there with some coaches to get a good net session,” said Mahmud.
Bangladesh open their Asia Cup campaign against Sri Lanka on September 15. Sri Lanka have also been hit hard with injuries. They have already lost Dinesh Chandimal and Danushka Gunathilaka to injuries while Akila Dananjaya is set to miss the early stage of the competition to attend the birth of his child.
