The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Sunday announced the 16-member squad that will play Pakistan in a two-Test series, set to begin on August 21 in Rawalpindi.
The Test matches will be played as part of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 as both teams are eager to perform and strengthen their position on the WTC points table.
Najmul Hossain Shanto will lead the 16-man squad, consisting of five pacers, missing the experienced Taskin Ahmed as he will only be available for the second Test.
“We have selected five pacers mindful of the fact that Taskin Ahmed will only play the second Test," Gazi Ashraf Hossain, Chairman National Selection Panel, said.
"He hasn’t bowled in a Test since June last year and we have decided to include him in the A Team for the second four-dayer against Pakistan A to get him into the rhythm for longer version matches."
Pakistan and Bangladesh have so far locked horns in 13 matches in six Test series with the Green Shirts emerging winners in 13 of them as one ended in a draw.
“The emphasis was on picking our best players for this version," Hossain said.
"This is a well-balanced squad. The likes of Mushfiqur (Rahim), Mominul (Haque) and Shakib (Al Hasan) have played 216 matches combined and there is no substitute for that kind of experience."
"Taijul (Islam) and Miraz (Mehidy Hasan) have been leading the spin department for a long time and have over 350 wickets between them. We also expect Shanto (Najmul Hossain), Litton (Kumar Das) and the other batsmen to step up because to be competitive against Pakistan, we will need a team effort.”
Bangladesh Test squad: Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Litton Kumar Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan, Nahid Rana, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Taskin Ahmed, Syed Khaled Ahmed
Pakistan Test Squad: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal (subject to Fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicket-keeper) and Shaheen Shah Afridi
Series schedule
1st Test: August 21 - 25 @ Pindi Cricket Stadium
2nd Test: August 30 - 4 September @ National Bank Stadium
