Uncapped Naeem Hasan Included in Bangladesh's Squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has drafted 17-year-old uncapped allrounder Naeem Hasan in the 14-member squad for the first Test against Sri Lanka. Experienced all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan also return as the captain of the Test side after Mushfiqur Rahim stepped down after the tour of South Africa last year.

It will be Shakib’s second tenure as a Test captain, having been replaced by Mushfiqur in 2011. His first stint, from July 2009 to August 2011, saw him lead the team in nine Tests, with one win and eight losses.

Hasan grabbed everybody’s attention in the Under-19 Asia Cup last year where he bagged a fifer and went on to bowl ten overs for eight runs, a spell that included seven maidens, against Malaysia. He is currently in New Zealand representing Bangladesh in the ICC U-19 World Cup.

“He is some kind of surprise package in our squad. We have been monitoring him since he has been playing age group cricket and believe he is quite ready for international cricket now considering the experience he gained in the first-class competition,” Bangladesh chief selector Minhajul Abedin said to Cricbuzz.

Southpaw Soumya Sarkar was dropped from the squad after his poor show in South Africa, while Subashis Roy and Shafiul Islam failed to find a place because of fitness issues. Kamrul Islam was also named in the squad. Kamrul last played against India in Hyderabad, where he went wicketless.

Mosaddek Hossain, who had played just one Test so far, also retained his spot after he scored a ton in the first-class fixture for South Zone against East Zone. Litton Das is again expected to take up the wicketkeeping responsibilities while Mushfiqur is set to play as a pure batsman.

“He [Mossadek] regained his fitness and scoring runs as well since he started to participate in competitive cricket. His also played well during the Test series against Sri Lanka. Kamrul has the ability to bowl long spells while his skills with the old ball can also come in handy for us,” Minhajul stated.

The first of the two-Test match series will kick off on January 31 at Chittagong. Two Twenty20 Internationals will follow the series.

Squad: Shakib al Hasan (c), Mahmudullah, Litton Das (wk), Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Imrul Kayes, Mominul Haque, Mosaddek Hossain, Taijul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Kamrul Islam, Mehidy Hasan, Rubel Hossain, Naeem Hasan.

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