Bangladesh Test and T20I captain Shakib al Hasan was absent in the Tigers’ first day of practice camp at Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka Friday, ahead of their tour of India where they will play three T20Is and two Test matches next month.
Cricketers called a strike Monday with their 13-point demands but after a fruitful discussion with the Bangladesh Cricket Board Wednesday, they called off the protest and declared their intention to join the national camp in time.
The practice session started at 3pm local time with a short warm-up session.
But the notable part was the absence of ace all-rounder Shakib.
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Questions were asked to the team management regarding Shakib’s absence but no one gave a satisfactory answer at the beginning.
Later, it was learnt that Shakib missed practice due to sickness and will join the camp Saturday.
After the warm-up session, the players went to the nets adjacent to the indoor practice facilities and practiced there till the evening.
Meanwhile, Tigers’ spin bowling consultant Daniel Vettori joined the practice camp after arriving in the capital Friday morning.
#Saifuddin ruled out of #India #T20Is https://t.co/yA2Qi1zbPF
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This was the first day in the office for Vettori as he has been signed (for 100 days) as a spin bowling consultant for Bangladesh team until the next World T20I in Australia.
Vettori was seen observing the players closely in his first day as Tigers’ coach and discussing with head coach Russell Domingo on quite a few occasions.
“As a left-arm spinner, we always followed his spin bowling. He was a great bowler with vast experience as a player. Also, he has good experience in coaching. As a spinner, we will definitely try to improve our performance by working with Vettori,” said left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny after practice.
Arafat has been recalled to the national team after three years.
#India rest captain #Kohli for #Bangladesh #T20s https://t.co/WTNXtYWU4E
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His bowling action was deemed to be suspect three years ago but later, he rectified his action.
The left-arm spinner, who has played 16 ODIs and 10 T20Is for Bangladesh, now wants to perform well in the upcoming series and revive his international career.
“Three years ago, my bowling action was called into question while playing in India, now I have been selected in the T20I squad for the India series. Definitely, I will try to perform well for the team and work hard for consistent performance so that I can keep my place in the team,” Arafat added.
Bangladesh team will practice for the next three days before departing for India to take part in the T20I series, which will start from November 3 at Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi.
