Dhaka:Bangladesh have named a 15-man squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2018 in the United Arab Emirates, which is set to commence on September 15.
Mohammad Mithun and Ariful Haque have made the squad for the biennial competition
at the expense of Anamul Haque and Sabbir Rahman, who were part of Bangladesh's
last one-day international series in the Windies earlier this year.
Mithun, 28, is a top-order batsman, who has played three ODIs since his debut in 2014
and last turned out for Bangladesh against Sri Lanka at home in January. Ariful Haque,
an all-rounder, is uncapped in ODIs but has played six Twenty20 Internationals, an ICC
report on Thursday said.
Masrafe Mortaza will lead the side and Shakib Al Hasan has been named the vice-captain.
Tamim Iqbal, Litton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib bolster their batting line-up while
Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, and Mortaza are the men with experience among the
bowlers.
Mehidy Hasan is the specialist spinner and Mahmudullah adds another all-round option in
addition to Shakib and Ariful Haque. Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Nazmul Islam, Abu Haider and
Mosaddek Hossain complete the squad, which is mostly unchanged from the series in the
Windies.
Abu Jayed, the 25-year-old bowling all-rounder, who was picked for the Windies ODIs but
didn't get a game, has also been excluded from the squad, while Anamul Haque, who returned
33 runs from three games against the Windies was dropped due to poor form.
Bangladesh, who are placed in Group B alongside Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, begin their
campaign with the tournament opener against Sri Lanka on September 15 at the Dubai
International Stadium. They then play Afghanistan on September 20 before the Super Four
stage.
Group A comprises the defending champions, India, Pakistan and the winner of the ongoing
Asia Cup Qualifier 2018. The final will be played on September 28.
Bangladesh Asia Cup 2018 squad: Masrafe Bin Mortaza (c), Shakib Al Hasan (vc), Tamim
Iqbal Khan, Mohammad Mithun, Litton Kumar Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Ariful Haque,
Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Mehidy Hasan Miraz,
Nazmul Islam Apu, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Haider Rony.(UNI)
