CHATTOGRAM, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh will start the second and final test against Sri Lanka on Saturday emboldened by the return of star allrounder Shakib Al Hasan, following the hosts’ crushing 328-run defeat in their opener.
“I think any team that has Shakib in it is very fortunate,” Bangladesh assistant coach Nic Pothas said Friday. “His energy is very infectious. He has a lot of experience for the guys to learn from and, whenever Shakib is back, he’s a giver.”
Shakib has been out of the national team since November at the Cricket World Cup in India. The captain hit 82 and took two wickets to beat Sri Lanka. But he broke his left index finger, and a vision problem was revealed.
He’s been playing for the last two months in the Bangladesh and Dhaka Premier Leagues with success. Shakib’s last test was in April 2023 against Ireland in Mirpur.
Batter Towhid Hridoy has been dropped to accommodate Shakib.
“He’s happy and that’s the only place we want Shakib. We want him happy,” Pothas said. “He will adapt to the conditions. That’s why he’s world class.”
The last of Shakib’s five test centuries came in 2017 against Sri Lanka in what was Bangladesh’s 100th test. Bangladesh won that match in what remains the side’s only test victory against Sri Lanka in 25 meetings.
READ MORE
Express bowler Yadav helps Lucknow beat Punjab in his IPL debut
Kohli 83 in vain as Kolkata thumps Bengaluru in IPL
Rajasthan beats Delhi by 12 runs for back-to-back home wins in IPL
Bangladesh has never won a test against Sri Lanka at home in 11 attempts.
Pothas will be in charge of the team in the final test in the absence of head coach Chandika Hathurusingha.
Dhananjaya de Silva became the first Sri Lanka captain to hit centuries in both innings of a test during the opener against Bangladesh, which failed to reach 200 in both its innings. He was unfazed by Shakib’s return, saying: “What I understand is that they will come hard but we’ll also come hard.”
De Silva made his focus clear.
“Why should I talk about him (Shakib)? He’s not in my team.”
___
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket