|| CF Correspondent ||

Bangladesh Cricket Board said on Saturday that wicket-keeper batsman Akbar Ali will lead Bangladesh in the upcoming ICC Under-19 World Cup, scheduled to take place in South Africa from January 2020.

Batsman Tawhid Hridoy will play the role of his deputy while the only surprising omission came in the form of Rishad Ahmed as selectors opted not to pick him for the global showpiece event for the age-level cricketer.

‘’We have not picked Rishad as he is now in our HP unit and we don’t want to bring him back from there. We usually play one genuine spinner in our team and fill the other spinning option with an all-rounder,’’ Hannan Sarkar told reporters after the squad was announced.

Hannan, the former national opener said that he is optimistic about their chances as they are preparing intensively for the last six months to make sure no stone is unturned as far as taking preparation for the global event of age-level cricketer.

‘’We have got a couple of good pace bowlers and we feel they can show their mettle while playing the ICC Under19 as it will be conducive for them in South Africa. For them touring England and New Zealand was a learning experience and we hope that they can use it in South Africa,’’ said Hannan.

A total of 16 teams will fight for the title, divided into four groups. India, Japan, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka are placed in Group A while Australia, England, Nigeria, and West Indies are in Group B. Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland and Zimbabwe are in Group C while Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates are in Group D.

Bangladesh will face Zimbabwe in their first game at JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom in South Africa on January 18 before taking on Scotland and Pakistan on January 21 and 24.

Before the main event, Bangladesh is scheduled to play two practice matches against Afghanistan and Potchefstroom Under 19 team. They have two warm-up games as well which will take place on January 13 and 15 against Australia and New Zealand respectively.

The top two teams of each group will qualify for Super League quarter-finals while the bottom two teams will have to play in Plate quarter-finals.

The winners of Super League quarter-finals will advance to the Semifinals while the winners of the Plate quarter-finals will qualify for the Plate semifinals.

Bangladesh team will leave the country for Johannesburg on January 3.