Cricketers’ camp begins with few surprise inclusions

Bangladesh cricketers geared into action following the Eid-ul-Fitr vacation with 37 players joining the national team’s camp in Mirpur on Friday.

Players of all three formats showed up except those competing in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). Interestingly, head coach Phil Simmons also called up a few players outside of the current national team setup.

“Those who played in the last white-ball series, T20I team regulars and the red-ball players are here [in the camp]. Alongside them, there are players who the coach wanted to see and who will help in practice sessions,” a BCB official informed.

From the High Performance Unit, all-rounders SM Meherob Hasan and Abdul Gaffar Saqlain were in the camp. Domestic regular Ruyel Miah and Mosaddek Hossain, who has not played for Bangladesh since 2022, were also present. 

It was a demanding day at the office for the players after a long break, undergoing fielding and conditioning drills on a hot and humid afternoon.

Taskin Ahmed resorted to cycling while Test skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto was seen carrying weights attached to his waist, a drill designed to improve strength for fielding purposes.

As per cricket operations officials, fielding and fitness will be the key agendas for the next few days. As the skill camp is yet to begin, local coaches Mohammad Salahuddin and Mohammad Ashraful were not part of the session yesterday.

“The next six days will be completely focused on fielding and fitness, which are part of the conditioning camp,” a member of the team management informed.

The players of three formats have different regimen to follow after conditioning camp’s first phase. The Test players will remain in the camp till April 16 before leaving for the first-class competition Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL), which starts on April 21.

White-ball players will remain in the camp till April 13. The ODI squad will begin a three-match home series against New Zealand on April 17 in Dhaka.

The T20I squad will hold a separate camp, building up to a three-match T20I series against the Kiwis, starting on April 27.