United News of Bangladesh

Pakistan’s pace attack made immediate use of fresh morning conditions to leave Bangladesh reeling early, but a steadying partnership between captain Najmul Hossain Shanto and veteran Mushfiqur Rahim guided the hosts to 101-3 at lunch on Day 1 of the second Test in Sylhet. After Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss and opted to bowl, seamer Mohammad Abbas justified the decision on just the second ball of the match. Abbas found immediate rhythm in the corridor, drawing a loose poke from Mahmudul Hasan Joy (0). The resulting outside edge was sharply taken low at second slip by Salman Agha, giving the visitors a dream start. The early blow made debutant Tanzid Hasan partner the skipper. Tanzid showed initial flashes of confidence, striking three boundaries in a brisk 26 off 34 balls.  However, his maiden Test innings came to an abrupt end due to a lapse in judgment. Facing a short delivery from Abbas, Tanzid attempted a reckless pull over mid-on but only managed a top-edge, which Abbas comfortably caught himself to leave Bangladesh at 44-2. Mominul Haque joined Shanto to orchestrate a brief recovery, contributing 22 runs before Khurram Shahzad produced the delivery of the morning. Shahzad unleashed a sharp, skidding delivery that nipped back aggressively, beating Mominul’s defensive stride to shatter the top of off-stump and reduce the hosts to 63-3. With the top-order back in the pavilion, Shanto and Mushfiqur showed necessary restraint to blunt the shifting momentum. Shanto batted with calculated discipline to reach an unbeaten 26 off 51 balls, while Mushfiqur looked assured during his 18 not out. Together, the duo stitched an unbroken 38-run stand to push Bangladesh past the triple-figure mark just before the stroke of lunch.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced its men’s and women’s teams for the year 2021 for different formats of cricket with maximum three cricketers being picked from Bangladesh in the Men’s ODI team. All- rounder Shakib Al Hasan, wicket-keeper batter Mushfiqur Rahim and pacer Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh included in the ICC Men’s ODI team. Bangladeshi brilliant pacer Mustafizur Rahman has also been included in the ICC Men’s T20 team for the year. But, Bangladesh has no representation in the ICC Men’s Test, Women’s ODI and T20 teams. Unrepresented in the ICC's Men's 'T20 Team of the Year 2021' due to a disastrous World Cup campaign in the UAE, no Indian cricketer featured in the global body's 'ODI Team of the Year 2021', despite the inclusion of two players from minnows Ireland. Incidentally, the ICC Men’s ODI team also does not have any cricketers from Australia, England, New Zealand and West Indies. But the team has two Pakistani cricketers, including Babar Azam as captain for both the Men’s ODI and T20 teams and another is Fakhar Zaman. Read: BPL 2022: Chattogram Challengers to Play Fortune Barishal in Season Opener Babar, who has played least among the 11 players, also has 405 runs in six games with two hundreds while his country-mate Zaman has 369 runs in the year. Shakib was superb as an all-rounder having 277 runs and 17 wickets, while Mushfiqur Rahim had 400-plus runs along with stumping and catches while pacer Mustafizur Rahman had 18 wickets to consider for ICC Men’s ODI team. Sri Lanka (15), Ireland (14) and Bangladesh (12) played the most number of ODIs in 2021, so their players dominate in the ICC XI. ICC teams of the year 2021 for different formats: Men's ODIs: Paul Stirling, Janneman Malan, Babar Azam (capt), Fakhar Zaman, Rassie van der Dussen, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Wanindu Hasaranga, Mustafizur Rahman, Simi Singh and Dushmantha Chameera Men's Tests: Dimuth Karunaratne, Rohit Sharma, Kane Williamson (capt), Joe Root, Marnus Labuschagne, Fawad Alam, Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Kyle Jamieson, Hasan Ali, and Shaheen Afridi Men's T20Is: Jos Buttler, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (capt), Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, David Miller, Wanindu Hasaranga, Tabraiz Shamsi, Josh Hazlewood, Mustafizur Rahman, and Shaheen Afridi Read: Bangabandhu BPL begins on Friday sans spectators Women's ODIs: Lizelle Lee, Alyssa Healy (wk), Tammy Beaumont, Mithali Raj, Heather Knight (capt), Hayley Matthews, Marizanne Kapp, Shabnim Ismail, Fatima Sana, Jhulan Goswami, and Anisa Mohammed Women's T20Is: Smriti Mandhana, Tammy Beaumont, Danni Wyatt, Gaby Lewis, Nat Sciver (capt), Amy Jones (wk), Laura Wolvaardt, Marizanne Kapp, Sophie Ecclestone, Loryn Phiri, Shabnim Ismail