Bangladesh axe Mahmudullah for first Test in Mirpur

DHAKA: Bangladesh brought back allrounder Nasir Hossain and medium pacer Shafiul Islam for their 14-member squad for the first Test against Australia.

Hossain played his last Test in 2015, and Islam in 2016.

Middle-order batsman Mominul Haque and Mahmudullah, part of Bangladesh’s squad in the 1-1 series against Sri Lanka, were left out. Haque has an impressive 46.88 Test average — the best among Bangladeshi batsmen who played at least 20 tests — and was dropped for the first time since his debut in 2013.

The first of two tests against Australia starts Aug. 27.

Chief selector Minhajul Abedin said Bangladesh didn’t want to change the winning combination from the Colombo test in March. “Mominul made just one 50 in the last six innings and his average dropped to below 28, that was reason to axe him,” Abedin said. “Mahmudullah’s form was not encouraging ... Nasir Hossain has been doing well in this period on the domestic circuit.” England have joined a gradually expanding band of Day-Night Test converts, with the concept having already been successfully trialled in Australia and by Pakistan in the UAE.

New Zealand are hoping to be the fourth country to join the list in 2018, so the question arises; “When will India schedule a DayNight Test match?”

The timing would be perfect for India. They currently have a strong Test side consistently performing well. Test cricket in India needs resuscitating, as it does in most countries outside England and Australia.

First of all it was ODIs that captured India’s imagination following the World Cup win in 1983 and then their MS Dhoni-led victory in the inaugural T20 tournament fuelled the highly successful IPL revolution.

The game is in an extremely strong financial state in India, which in turn ensures they’re the powerhouse in world cricket. However,withpowercomesleadership responsibilities and lately the BCCI has struggled to maintain a high standard.

A successful Day-Night Test experience would not only enhance the five-day game in India, it could also do wonders for the BCCI’s public relations image.

It’s crucial for the game that the Indian administrative body is seen as a good corporate citizen. Despite occasional murmurings about Test cricket being important, the message emanating from India’s administration seems to be the glorified stature of IPL and their proposed expansion of the glitzy tournament will only serve to confirm this

opinion.