Mushfiqur Rahim, an experienced wicketkeeper-batter, one of the best in the business, was named by the Bangladesh Cricket Board in the 21-member squad for the Bangladesh Tigers Program.
This camp will host 21 players who will undergo rigorous physical, mental, and strategic training at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka. Training will also take place at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram and the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium.
Several top-quality players, including Rahim, Zakir Hasan, and Mominul Haque, have been named in the camp, too. The players will train for the upcoming challenges, either with the red ball or the white ball in mind.
One of the biggest flutters in this camp was caused by Mohammad Saifuddin. He was included in it but then asked for leave as he wanted to be alongside his wife, who was expecting. Five other players were picked to train with white ball and be prepared as standbys for the T20 World Cup.
“Saifuddin is part of the Tigers program, and there were instructions that six players should be training with the white ball to prepare for the ICC T20 World Cup if any replacement is required.
“Yesterday, Saifuddin called me for family reasons. His wife is expecting, and he will not be available for the camp till June 10 as he requested leave. We are preparing Khaled at the moment,” chief selector Gazi Ashraf told reporters at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
“We did not know his wife was expecting a child as he did not inform us about it. If anyone is injured or unavailable, we are informed beforehand. I believe he would have fulfilled national duty, but, as this is a secondary program, he can ask for a request for leave,” he said.
“We have chosen six players for the white ball as standby for the World Cup. We have chosen Anamul Haque and Nurul Hasan since Jaker has a problem. We had kept Saifuddin, and now there is Khaled. Saifuddin will join us on June 10. There is Emon (Parvez Hossain), Nasum Ahmed and Mehedy Hasan. Last night, Nasum gave us a letter explaining that he would not be available for the first four to five days as he suffers from jaundice,” he added.
