Bangladesh name squad

Mushfiqur Rahim misses out on ODI selection © Getty Images

Buy this photo

Bangladesh have included four uncapped players in their 14-man squad for this month’s three-match one-day international series against South Africa.

Batsmen Raqibul Hasan and Nazimuddin, wicketkeeper-batsman Dhiman Ghosh and left-arm spinner Mosharraf Hossain have got the nod for the series, which begins on Sunday in Chittagong.

Regular wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim, who played in both the Tests against Proteas, has been dropped because of his poor form with the bat.

Chief selector Rafiqul Alam said: “We have preferred Dhiman as wicketkeeper because Rahim is badly out of touch. He is keeping okay but has not delivered with the bat.

“Dhiman is an aggressive batsman who is in good form. He has been playing for the A team and academy team regularly and his wicketkeeping has also improved. We think he can be quite destructive as a batsman in the one-day form of the game.”

Batsman Aftab Ahmed, who was hit in the eye by a Jacques Kallis bouncer in the second Test, has not recovered fully and selectors have decided to opt for Nazimuddin, who has a similar attacking approach to the game.

“We suffered a big blow with the injury of Aftab in the second Test and Nazimuddin is his replacement. He has a similar attacking batting style to Aftab and was the top run-scorer in the first-class competition this year,” said Alam.

Left-arm medium-pace bowler Syed Rasel has also been recalled to the team after he missed a large part of the team’s tour to New Zealand last year due to a dislocation of his left collar bone.

The second and third ODIs will be played in Mirpur.

Bangladesh squad: Mohammad Ashraful (capt), Mashrafe Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Nazimuddin, Shahriar Nafees, Shakib Al Hasan, Dhiman Ghosh (wk), Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Mosharraf Hossain, Syed Rasel, Farhad Reza, Raqibul Hasan.