Bangladesh team management is waiting until the last moment regarding the availability of experienced opener Tamim Iqbal and also pondering options for pacer Taskin Ahmed over managing his workload ahead of a busy schedule in white-ball cricket this year.
Tamim felt discomfort during training prior to the lone Test match against Afghanistan and did not practice last Saturday.
The left-hander however, returned to training Tuesday on the eve of the game and batted for almost 20 minutes in Mirpur in the practice session and also took part in some fielding drills in the morning.
But his inclusion will be decided in the last hour before the match Wednesday.
Tigers squad has options in the form of Zakir Hasan, Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Nazmul Hossain Shanto as top-order batsmen if Tamim is ruled out due to injury.
“I think he is going to train (Tuesday) and see how he feels. He trained the day before and he had some discomfort when he was doing certain disciplines, fielding and batting. So, he's going to train (Tuesday) and we will assess him after training,” head coach Chandika Hathurusingha said to the media during the press conference Tuesday morning in Mirpur.
Taskin is one of the main spearheads of the Bangladesh pace attack and has returned from injury recently.
He last played against Ireland on March 31 in the Twenty20 International series and featured in his last Test against India in 2022.
The team management is cautious about his workload given that there are plenty of white-ball matches scheduled for this year, including the Asia Cup and World Cup, both just a few months away.
The solitary Test against Afghanistan is expected to be played on a greenish wicket at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium and Tigers team management is considering playing three pacers.
Whether Taskin gets the nod or management takes a cautious approach on his return will be decided Wednesday morning before the game.
“Actually, Taskin trained really, really well during that rehab phase. Physically I think he's in the best condition we all have seen. He will be ready to go if we decide to play him because there's nothing stopping him at the moment. There's no injury. Bowling workload is the one little bit of concern we had leading up to this period. So again, for him also, we will assess after (Tuesday's) training and then make up our minds,” said Hathurusingha.
Apart from Taskin, Bangladesh have four more pacers in the squad in Khaled Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Shoriful Islam and the uncapped Mushfik Hasan.
