Mortaza ruled out of series against Sri Lanka, Tamim to lead Bangladesh
Dubai: Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka and in Mortaza's absence, opening batsman Tamim Iqbal will lead the side.
The right-arm pacer picked up a left hamstring injury during training, which was later revealed to be a grade 1 tear, and it has ruled him out of action for between three and four weeks, International Cricket Council (ICC) reported.
Tamim does have previous international leadership experience, as he lead the Tigers in one Test in New Zealand in 2017 following an injury to then-captain Mushfiqur Rahim.
However, this will be his first time leading experience in ODIs.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has declined to name a replacement in the squad, which has already been announced.
The BCB on Tuesday had announced a 14-member squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka, but with Mortaza's injury, the squad has decreased to 13 members.
Wicket-keeper batsman Anamul Haque and spinner Taijul Islam were called back into the team in place of Shakib Al Hasan and Liton Das.
Anamul last played for Bangladesh a year ago in a match against West Indies while spinner Taijul was part of the team in 2016.
Both Shakib and Das were granted leaves by the BCB after the recently concluded ICC Men's Cricket World Cup.
Abu Jayed, who was a part of Bangladesh's World Cup side, was dropped from the team.
Bangladesh will be having a three-day camp from July 17 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka. The team will leave for Colombo on July 20, a BCB statement said.
The ODI team members are Tamim Iqbal (Captain), Soumya Sarker, Anamul Haque Bijoy, Md Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmud Ullah, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Shabbir Rahaman, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Shaif Uddin and Mustafizur Rahman.
Bangladesh finished at the eighth position in the World Cup as the side managed to win just three matches in the tournament.
Bangladesh takes on Sri Lanka in the first ODI of the three-match series on July 26.
