Bangladesh cricket to be bolstered by special domestic ODI tri-series in October

Things seem to be getting better for Bangladesh cricket with an introduction of a new domestic ODI series in the country. Competitive cricket resumes after the COVID-19 pandemic, as three teams are set to battle it out in the competition. The 50-overs tournament will be held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur from October 11-23.

Cricket resumes in Bangladesh

Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan told reporters that the board has formed three different teams for the event, and they have scheduled it in a way that every player gets to play at least two matches. This initiative is likely to provide exposure to up-and-coming players along with an opportunity to rub shoulders with stalwarts of Bangladesh cricket like Mashrafe Mortaza, Abu Jayed, Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah and many more. A total of seven matches will be played, including the finals.

Former Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza, who tested positive for coronavirus recently, will not feature in the tri-series as Hassan revealed that the player will need some time to regain fitness and as a result, has not been included in any of the squads. Mashrafe Mortaza is likely to participate in the Bangladesh Cricket Board's T20 tournament, which is in the pipeline and the board plans to conduct it in November. The management plans to include foreign players as well in their T20 tournament. 

Apart from Mashrafe Mortaza, Abu Jayed and Saif Hassan were other Bangladesh cricketers to test positive for the virus. With Abu Jayed and Saif Hassan testing negatively, the duo has been included in the squads for the tri-series. The competition organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board will commence on October 11, with the finals slated for October 23. All the matches will be day-night fixtures, as confirmed by the board.

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Bangladesh Cricket Board also announced the squads for the three teams which include players from their World Cup-winning U-19 team and from the board's high-performance program. Each team comprises 15 players who will remain in a bio-secure bubble along with their support staff the match officials. Mahmudullah XI will take on Najmul XI in the opening encounter on October 11. The Bangladesh cricket board shared the complete schedule for the series on their Twitter account.

Complete squads for Bangladesh Cricket Board's Tri-series 

Mahmudullah XI:

• Mahmudullah (c),, Liton Das (wk),  Ebadat Hossain, Nurul Hasan (wk), Sabbir Rahman, Imrul Kayes, Hasan Mahmud, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Naim Rubel Hossain, Mrittunjoy Chowdhury, Rakibul Hasan, Aminul Islam Biplob, Mominul Haque, Mahmudul Hasan

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Najmul XI:

• Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Soumya Sarkar, Saif Hassan, Afif Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Towhid Hridoy, Irfan Sukkur (wk), Parvez Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Al-Amin Hossain, Abu Jayed, Mukidul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Rishad Hossain.

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Tamim XI:

• Tamim Iqbal (c), Tanzid Hasan, Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Mithun (wk), Shahadat Hossain, Yasir Ali, Akbar Ali (wk), Anamul Haque (wk), Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman, Khaled Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Mahedi Hasan, Taijul Islam, Minhajul Abedin Afridi.

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Image source: Bangladesh Cricket Twitter