'Unfortunate' - Bangladesh chief selector laments Nahid Rana's absence from Australia tour

Bangladesh chief selector Habibul Bashar is lamenting pacer Nahid Rana’s absence from the two‑match Test tour of Australia due to a side strain. Bashar said the injury occurred despite exercising extra caution with his workload management.

“Nahid Rana was well within our workload management policy,” Bashar was quoted as saying by Cricinfo. “The GPS tracker tells us everything these days, so we decide which match, how many matches, and which series each fast bowler will play. Nahid Rana didn’t play all the matches when Australia toured here in June. He was available for the two Tests in Australia according to the workload management.”

Bangladesh were indeed circumspect with Rana’s workload, making him sit out the one‑off Test against Zimbabwe. He played two of the three ODIs, claiming seven wickets, and then featured in two of the three T20Is. Bashar explained that they unleashed him in the white‑ball contests against Zimbabwe to ensure he had enough overs under his belt before the demanding tour down under.

“We didn’t pick him for the Test against Zimbabwe by being extra cautious,” Bashar added. “He got hurt in the second T20I after having played the first two ODIs, so it was unfortunate. We could have avoided playing him, but the ODIs were part of our push towards the World Cup.

“We also have to keep in mind that he had to bowl enough overs. You can’t just let him sit out matches. He has to bowl a certain number of deliveries to be match‑ready. We had to consider that part too. His injury is unfortunate; it could have happened in Australia. It is hard to keep fast bowlers free of injuries.”

Bangladesh recall Soumya Sarkar out of sheer ‘desperation’

Habibul Bashar revealed that Soumya Sarkar was recalled out of sheer “desperation.” He underlined that the young openers currently plying their trade in the National Cricket League (NCL), Bangladesh’s first‑class competition, are not yet prepared for Test cricket.

“You can say that there was a bit of desperation,” he said. “To be honest, those who made runs in the NCL are new players. Zakir Hasan had played Tests before, but we felt Soumya had more familiarity with pace bowling. None of our players in the pipeline are ready. We have to give the likes of Shibli [Ariful Islam] and Pritom Kumar a year or two.”

Soumya’s inclusion in the playing XI creates a problem of plenty, with too many left‑handers in the top four, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, and Najmul Hossain Shanto being the others. However, Mahmudul Hasan Joy’s (right-hander) lack of form meant the selectors could not pick him.

“We were aware that by picking Soumya, we would have too many left‑handers in the top order,” Bashar said. “It is certainly not ideal, which is why [Mahmudul Hasan] Joy fit into our combination as a right‑hand opener. But so far, Joy’s performance is concerning. We felt he is out of form, and his batting is in a vulnerable state. We felt that the team management may not keep him in their combination, so we are sending him to South Africa with the A team. We are hopeful he can return to form on that tour.”