|| CF DESK ||

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has announced the squad for the first of the two Tests against Sri Lanka. The 15-man roster includes one new face in 21-year-old fast bowler Nahid Rana.

Since making his first-class debut in November 2021, Rana has taken 63 wickets from 15 matches. Litton Das returns to the side after missing the last Test series   

The first Test gets underway in Sylhet on 22 March while the second match begins in Chattogram on 30 March. The Tests are a part of the 2023-25 ICC World Test Championship cycle:  

 “We feel that the squad picked for the first Test has a very nice balance. Our Test side is a fairly settled one with Nahid Rana being the only newcomer. Litton (Kumer Das) is back after missing the last Test series we played as he was on leave. All the departments have backups and have been well covered. I think we have a team that can adapt to the requirements of the conditions,” selector Abdur Razzak said.

“Rana is a very exciting prospect. He is probably the quickest bowler in Bangladesh at the moment and can also extract steep bounce. Although these are early days for him, his first-class record is quite impressive. There is another young pacer Mushfik Hasan in the squad. This is the right time for these pacers to get the experience as Ebadot (Hossain) is out injured and Taskin (Ahmed) is also not playing Tests at the moment.”

“We have a stable Test squad now. Litton’s return bolsters the batting as he has the experience and we trust his ability.  We also want to back players like Shahadat Hossain Dipu who we think is a batsman for the future.”

SQUAD (1st Test)

Najmul Hossain Shanto (Captain), Zakir Hasan, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shadman Islam, Litton Das, Mominul Haque Showrab, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shahadat Hossain Dipu, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Nayeem Hasan, Taijul Islam, Shoriful Islam, Syed Khaled Ahmed, Mushfik Hasan, Nahid Rana