Bangladesh star bowler ruled out of India Tests

The Bangladesh cricket team suffered a major blow ahead of the Test series against India, as star player Shoriful Islam has been ruled out of the tour after failing to recover from a groin injury sustained during the first Test match against Pakistan, which also caused him to miss the second Test. It was initially expected that the 23-year-old left-arm pacer would recover in time for the India tour, but he was unable to do so. This has led to a single change in the squad that toured Pakistan, where Bangladesh secured a historic 2-0 series win.

The recovery roadmap remains positive, with the team’s think tank hopeful that Shoriful will be available for the T20I leg of the India tour.

"Shoriful can't be considered fully fit at the moment. He was unfit during the second Test in Pakistan, which is why he wasn't part of the selection process. However, he has been kept under follow-up, and the physios and trainers are monitoring him," said national selector Hannan Sarkar in an interaction with the media.

"I wouldn't call him 100% fit for Tests because a Test match may require him to bowl 15-20 overs. We also have T20 matches after this, where Shoriful is an important player for us. Given that he's not fully fit yet, we're not willing to take any risks. We have other fully fit players in the Test squad who can compete. Therefore, we chose not to take a risk with Shoriful, but hopefully, he will recover in time and return to the T20 squad."

In place of Shoriful, the Bangladesh team has called up Jaker Ali, who has earned his maiden Test selection. Primarily known for his power-hitting in T20 cricket, Ali impressed during Bangladesh A's recent tour of Pakistan, which helped him secure his spot in the squad.

"Regarding Jaker Ali Anik, we considered both the conditions and the opposition. We had taken five pacers to Pakistan, but this time, we've reduced the number of pacers by one and added a middle-order specialist batter. Given the team combination, we felt it was necessary to strengthen the middle order, considering both the conditions and the opposition."

Bangladesh kick-off the series with the first Test in Chennai followed by the next in Kanpur.

Squad:Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Litton Kumer Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Nahid Rana, Hasan Mahmud, Taskin Ahmed, Syed Khaled Ahmed, Jaker Ali Anik