Former skipper Shakib Al Hasan’s availability for the second Test against India, starting September 27 is under a cloud after the star all-rounder suffered an injury to his finger while batting in the opening Test against India in Chennai. Shakib got hit by a Jasprit Bumrah delivery and needed some treatment after the tourists lost by a mammoth 280-run margin.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) said on Monday that they will take a call on Shakib’s availability for the Kanpur Test following a medical assessment.
“We are heading to Kanpur tomorrow (Tuesday) and today is a day off. We will have two sessions afterwards and we will judge after that (regarding Shakib’s availability in the second Test) and we don’t want to make a decision yet,” Hannan Sarkar, member of the BCB’s selection panel, told reporters in Chennai on Monday.
“These two days, the physio has kept him under observation. When we get back to the ground, we will get the physio’s feedback. We have to think before picking Shakib for the next match and there is time before the next match. We will see what condition he is in,” he added.
Resuming the fourth day with Bangladesh needing another 357 runs with six wickets in hand, Shakib and skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto defied the testing spell from the Indian pace attack, adding another 36 runs to their overnight total of 158/4 in the first hour of play on Sunday. Thereafter, the team lost the remaining six wickets in approximately 50 minutes of play, with Ravichandran Ashwin leading India’s charge with figures of 6/88 and Ravindra Jadeja chipping in with three wickets to help India to a 1-0 lead in the two-match Test series.
In the post-match conference, Bangladesh captain Najmul downplayed any injury concerns to Shakib and insisted that the visitors did not use Shakib as a bowler as he felt others were doing well. Hannan echoed the skipper and also cleared that Shakib had no injuries ahead of the opening Test.
“We know the pain in his hand is being discussed. It was not there before the match and many have tried to explain it in different ways. But before the match, we got a 100 percent clearance from the physio before taking him. He was a 100 percent fit then,” said Hannan.
“You can’t say it’s an injury. The discomfort he felt in that finger was not there before the match. He felt that when he started to bowl,” he said.
The Bangladesh star suffered a left index finger injury during the ODI World Cup last year, and also had to sit out for the match against India during the tournament due to a shoulder issue. Meanwhile, the finger injury ruled him out for a few months. He also had an eye problem to add to his list of issues.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s batting coach, David Hemp, revealed that he “wasn’t aware” about Shakib’s injury concerns, igniting speculations over the all-rounder’s fitness. “No, not aware of that at all, sorry,” he had said.