Bangladesh ring in changes for Sri Lanka T20I series

Bangladesh have announced a heavily revamped squad for their upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka later this month. The three-match series will see games played on July 10 in Pallekele, July 13 in Dambulla, and July 16 in Colombo.

The most notable omission from the squad is former captain Najmul Hossain Shanto. He was part of the team during Bangladesh’s last T20I series in May against Pakistan and the UAE but played in only one of the six matches.

This comes on the back of an underwhelming 2024, where Shanto struggled with the bat in 21 T20Is, managing just one half-century and averaging 18.84. Having stepped down from the T20I captaincy in January, he now finds himself completely out of the squad.

Left hander Mohammad Naim has been roped into the squad as the new opener in place of Shanto. Naim had a solid domestic season where he was the highest run-getter in both the BPL and NCL T20s, finishing on 827 runs at an average of 37.59 average and a strike rate of 140.40, including a century and six fifties.

Bangladesh have also been bolstered by the return of pace duo Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman, both of whom have recovered from injuries and recently featured in the first ODI against Sri Lanka. Another notable inclusion is Mohammad Saifuddin, making a comeback to the national setup after over a year. The pacer had taken a break from cricket following his omission from Bangladesh’s 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup squad but has returned in fine form, claiming 37 wickets across the BPL and DPL — the country’s premier white-ball competitions.

The final change sees Nasum Ahmed brought into the squad in place of Tanvir Islam in the spin department, as Bangladesh continues its search for a dependable left-arm spinner in the white-ball formats.

Bangladesh squad:

Litton Das (capt), Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Mohammad Naim, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mohammad Saifuddin.