Mushfiqur Rahim sustains injury during gym session

Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim sustained an injury while working out at a gym in Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur on September 17, Saturday. He copped four stitches below his left knee, and he will be kept under observation for a minimum of two weeks, confirmed the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Saturday.

Mushfiqur was expected to be next in action for the upcoming National League, which is set to begin on October 10. He recently announced his retirement from T20Is following a below-par Asia Cup 2022 campaign earlier in the month. And this will be the first time, he will not be part of Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup squad. 

Bangladesh faced a shocking exit in the Asia Cup after losing both their group games. And Mushfiqur had a forgettable outing, scoring 1 against Afghanistan and 4 against Sri Lanka. Mushfiqur played 102 T20Is and scored 1,500 runs at an average of 19.48 and a strike rate of 115.03 with six fifties and a top score of 72*.

Young faces in Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup squad

Following his retirement, Mushfiqur’s childhood coach opined that the wicketkeeper-batter was trying too hard in the nets to adapt to T20 cricket. He said that Mushfiqur was going out of his character to revive his T20 career. In July, another long-serving Bangladesh player, Tamim Iqbal announced his retirement following the side’s West Indies tour. Former captain of the national T20 team, Mahmudullah Riyad also failed to get into the squad for the T20 World Cup, which is set to begin on October 16 in Australia.

Star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan will lead the Tigers for the mega event. The batting department comprises Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Yasir Ali and Najmul Hossain Shanto. They have gone with a young bowling lineup of Hasan Mahmud, Ebadot Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasum Ahmed and Taskin Ahmed. They are equipped with all-rounders Afif Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Saifuddin, and wicketkeeper-batters Litton Das and Nurul Hasan. They are placed along with India, Pakistan and South Africa in the Super 12 pool.