|| Cricfrenzy Correspondent ||

Bangladesh out of favour batsman Sabbir Rahman is eyeing to make a statement through performing in the upcoming President's Cup. The Bangladesh Cricket Board announced a one-day competition named BCB President's Cup between three teams - to be led by Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah and Najmul Hossain Shanto - between October 11 and 23 to build up towards the return of domestic cricket in Bangladesh.

All players, support staffers, match officials and others connected to the matches, which will be day-nighters, are going to be placed in a bio-secure bubble during the course of the tournament while the three teams will play each other twice in the league stage, with the top two teams meeting in the final.

Most members of the 15-man squads are players who were part of the two-leg training camp held since September 20 in preparation for the now-aborted Sri Lanka tour while to that group the selectors have added some members of 2020 Under-19 World Cup-winning squad, including captain Akbar Ali, as well as players from the BCB's high-performance programme.

While there are lots of talks regarding the inclusion of the young blood it can be considered as a fitting platform for a cricketer like Sabbir, who is included in Mahmudullah XI. BCB announcement that suggest all the 45 players must be selected for at least two matches can be a relief for Sabbir, who is out of BCB national radar for quite some time.

‘’I think it’s a great opportunity for me and if I can perform surely it can provide some break in my career,’’ said Sabbir on Friday.
‘’I am out of national radar for a while and as all the eyes will be fixed on this tournament must make sure that I can get the most out of it,’’ said Sabbir.

Sabbir added that he had done some batting practice in the meantime while worked mostly with his fitness. ‘I had done some batting but that was limited to knocking and all those stuff mainly at the Residential School beside my house in Dhaka because scopes are very limited here,’’ he said.

‘’I had worked on my fitness during this time and I firmly believe that fitness can play a major role behind your performance,’’ he said.

‘‘I am from Rajshahi. On March 25 I went back to Rajshahi and in the beginning of the pandemic period I was a bit reluctant to go outside, stayed in home quarantine to ensure the safety of my family members. That time I did some physical training at home. But later I started training outdoors,’’ he said.

 ‘‘Gradually I started solo practice in the indoor section of Rajshahi stadium when no one else was present. Clemon cricket Academy has a gym, I also worked out there. I did running practice in a local ground and also practised batting and bowling in the indoors,’’ he added.