Bangladesh have drafted Saif Hassan into their one-day set-up for the first time and handed wicketkeeper-batter Nurul Hasan an ODI return after a two-year gap. The pair headline a 16-strong squad for three ODIs against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi next week.
Hassan’s form in August’s Asia Cup did most of the persuading. Scores of 61 and 69 in Super Four matches against Sri Lanka and India confirmed what the selectors had already seen in domestic List-A cricket. Nurul, meanwhile, edged back into the conversation with a brisk 23* off 13 balls that dragged Bangladesh over the line in last Sunday’s opening T20I in Sharjah.
There is, inevitably, a casualty. Opener Litton Das remains out with the side strain picked up during that same Asia Cup. Parvez Hossain Emon, part of July’s Afghanistan series at home, also drops out.
Logistics have thrown up their own headaches. Mohammad Naim is still in Dhaka waiting for a UAE visa, while Soumya Sarkar – involved only in the ongoing T20Is – is stuck for the same reason. ODI skipper Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Najmul Hossain Shanto and fast bowlers Hasan Mahmud, Tanvir Islam and Nahid Rana are expected to fly on Friday to join the main party.
Schedule in brief: the remaining T20Is are set for 3 and 5 October in Sharjah; the ODIs follow in Abu Dhabi on 8, 11 and 14 October.
So, a slightly reshuffled group, but not a revolution. The selectors have been keen to reward recent runs rather than reputations, and Hassan’s patient technique at the top could give the order a calmer feel. Nurul’s glovework is rarely questioned; his late-innings hitting, still a work-in-progress, will get another examination on larger Emirati outfields.
Bangladesh ODI squad
Mehidy Hasan Miraz (capt), Tanzid Hasan, Mohammad Naim, Saif Hassan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Tanvir Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana
