Mohammad Saifuddin snub of World Cup squad is ‘Unfortunate’, says Imrul Kayes

|| CF CORRESPONDENT ||

Mohammad Saifuddin’s snub from the Bangladesh 2024 T20 World Cup squad is the most discussed issue as the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced a 15-men squad today for the USA and West Indies mega event without this all-rounder.

Opener Imrul Kayes talked to Cricfrenzy and said it’s very unfortunate that Saifuddin, who was a strong candidate the World Cup is not flying with the team.

“We've been discussing a name repeatedly, Saifuddin. I also knew he was going to the World Cup. It seemed like he was in the squad even before the last match against Zimbabwe. Due to everyone's expectations and his performance, it seemed he would go. He couldn't perform well in one match. Maybe he messed up one match in that series. Then I saw he wasn't in the squad. It's very unfortunate,” Imrul said.

Saifuddin, who took eight wickets in the four matches against Zimbabwe at an economy rate of 9.31, was the only player to be cut from the provisional squad and has been replaced by Tanzim Sakib.

Saifuddin had taken 15 wickets in the last Bangladesh Premier League, while Tanzim has 12 wickets in these two competitions.

Bangladesh chief selector Gazi Ashraf said that Saifuddin's lack of yorkers in the death overs against Zimbabwe was one of the reasons he was left out.

However, Imrul, who was similarly cut off at the last moment in the 2019 World Cup, addressed that Saifuddin is one of the best death bowlers for Tigers and he proved himself not only in the last BPL but also in other domestic leagues.

“In the BPL he has performed beautifully... I think if there's a good bowler in the death overs, Saifuddin is one of the best. Not only in this BPL but also proved himself in many BPLs. He has also proved himself in domestic cricket. From that perspective, it's very unfortunate that he's left out of the team. Since it's a part of management, they might have thought about it a lot. But as a cricketer and as an audience, I think Saifuddin was a good option.” Imrul added.