BCB officials said on Monday that they will decide on Shakib Al Hasan’s availability for the Kanpur Test after a medical check. Shakib hurt his finger while batting in the first Test against India in Chennai when he was hit by a ball from Jasprit Bumrah and needed some treatment.
“We are heading to Kanpur tomorrow (Tuesday), and today is a day off. We will have two sessions after that and will decide about Shakib’s availability for the second Test then. We don’t want to make a decision yet,” Hannan Sarkar, a member of the BCB’s selection panel, told reporters in Chennai on Monday.
“During these two days, the physio has been watching him closely. When we get back to the ground, we will get the physio’s feedback. We need to think carefully before picking Shakib for the next match, and we have time before that. We will see how he is doing,” he said.
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain said they didn’t use Shakib as a bowler because others were performing well and downplayed any injury concerns for the left-arm spinner. Hannan agreed and clarified that Shakib had no finger injury before the first Test.
“We know people are talking about the pain in his hand. It wasn’t there before the match, and many have tried to explain it differently. But before the match, we got a 100 percent clearance from the physio. He was completely fit then,” said Hannan.
He further added that it can’t be called an injury. The discomfort he felt in that finger wasn’t there before the match. He only felt it when he started to bowl.
