Injured Shakib returns to practice in Mirpur

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan who will miss the upcoming one-off Test against Afghanistan back to Mirpur on Thursday and underwent practice with national team ahead of limited over series against Afghanistan. 

The ace all-rounder will miss the only Test match as the all-rounder sustained a finger injury in an ODI against Ireland that is expected to sideline him for at least six weeks.

But Shakib came to practice on Thursday and his presence boosted national cricketers during training. Shakib basically worked with his fitness on Thursday as he was seen undergoing running session. He also talked with head coach Chandika Hathurusingha for a while.

Shakib had recently undergone a further X-ray on the injured finger and the outcome came out good.

"The X-ray result is quite good. We are hopeful that he could make a comeback into the ODI and T20 series," BCB chief physician Dr. Debashis Chowdhury told the reporters on Thursday.

"He needs to keep him fit if he wants to make a comeback. That's the main challenge for him," Dr. Chowdhury said. "His fracture was not a problem at all. He will start rehab within a couple of days," he added. The only Test between Afghanistan and Bangladesh will be held on June 14 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

After the Test game, Afghanistan will go to India for a white-ball series before coming back here again to complete the ODI and T20 series in July. Litton Das will captain Bangladesh for the first time in a Test in the one-off clash with Afghanistan in Mirpur, starting on June 14. Shakib returned to country from USA after a holiday with his family and he is expected to return to action during while ball series against Afghanistan.

Litton Das who will lead Bangladesh in only Test has previously led Bangladesh in four white-ball matches, including three ODIs against India late last year, but is yet to captain the side in a Test match.

The 28-year-old has played 38 Tests and compiled 2319 runs with three centuries. Afghanistan Cricket Board's Selection Committee on Wednesday finalized a 15-member squad for the one-off test match against Bangladesh. Afghans will play one-off Test without spin wizard Rashid Khan.   

Bangladesh squad:

Litton Das (c), Tamim Iqbal, Zakir Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Syed Khaled Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shahadat Hossain, Musfik Hasan.
Afghanistan Squad:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (C), Rahmat Shah (VC), Afsar Zazai (WK), Ikram Alikhail (WK), Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Baheer Shah, Nasir Jamal, Karim Janat, Zahir Khan, Izharulhaq Naweed, Hamza Hotak, Ibrahim Abdulrahimzai, Yamin Ahmadzai and Nijat Masoud.

Zia ur Rahman Akbar, Noor Ali Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai and Sayed Ahmad Shirzad are part of the reserve players for the tour.