Riyad recalled for South Africa tour
Subhashis, Rubel added to pace department
Sports Reporter
Mahmudullah Riyad has been recalled to Bangladeshs 15-member squad for the upcoming Test series against South Africa in a bid to bolster and add some experience to the batting line up that unarguably looked under-strength because of the absence of Shakib Al Hasan who was granted break from the series.
It will be the first time Shakib wont be part of the Test team since the series against West Indies in 2014.
Since Shakib Al Hasan has been giving Bangladesh a flexibility in both batting and bowling, the selectors also went for a bowling option in Taijul Islam, a left arm spinner like Shakib. Taijul though played against Australia, wasnt in the original plan to tour in South Africa where pacers always get some advantage.
Considering the pitch in South Africa, Bangladesh however strengthened their seam-bowling options by adding Subhashis Roy and Rubel Hossain to the squad. They would line up with Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman and Shafiul Islam who all were in the squad for the home series against Australia.
Nasir Hossain, who couldnt do much with batting or bowling in his comeback series against Australia, was excluded as expectedly.
However Shakibs absence made the selectors job tougher since they had to ponder extra batsman and bowler but chief selector Minhajul Abedin Nannu felt that a players mentality must be considered.
The board kept an option for Shakib to join the Test squad in the second Test, Nannu said while announcing the team.
If he feels good, he may join the side in the second Test. Thats up to him totally, he said. It is hard to replace a player like his caliber but we respect his decision.
We have to take into account his mental state because as a player I understand what he may be going through physically and mentally.
Riyad last played a Test in Sri Lanka in March earlier this year. He lost his place during the second Test, happened to be Bangladeshs 100 appearance in longer version format and subsequently wasnt considered in the home series against Australia.
Nannu said that Riyad was his personal choice, based on his ability to adapt well on bouncy pitches and seaming conditions.
I am confident about him. He has always been a good player in bouncy wicket as we have seen in Australia and England. I think he is a good choice for the South Africa series, Nannu pondered.
Despite struggling against Australia, Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes kept their place in the squad, primarily due to a lack of opening options. Mosaddek Hossain remained out of contention as his eye infection hadnt improved, and will be sent to Bangkok soon for further medical attention.
Kayes, Soumya have the experience and we are yet to get players of their standard in domestic cricket as of now. Besides we dont want any new player to make debut in the tough condition in South Africa. It wont be good for his career. So we prioritized the experience. We hope that those two players would utilise their experience to shrug off their bad patch in South Africa, Nannu explained.
Bangladesh squad: Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah Riyad, Liton Das, Mominul Haque, Mehedi Hasan Miraj, Taijul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Subhashi Roy.
