Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the team management have decided to send their two fast bowlers Nahid Rana and Taskin Ahmed to Australia for medical examination and fitness assessment before the rest of the players.
As Bangladesh prepare for the crucial two-match Test series against Australia starting on August 13, injury concerns are rising over their pace attack.
Rana has already been ruled out of the series, while Taskin is in a race against time to prove his fitness ahead of the WTC series. Meanwhile, Habibul Bashar explains why Naheed Rana was rested for Zimbabwe’s one-off Test.
Nahid Rana and Taskin Ahmed left before the main squad
Nahid Rana and Taskin Ahmed are scheduled to go to Australia before the rest of the Bangladesh team. Rana and Taskin will fly to Australia on Tuesday, July 28, along with Bangladesh team physio Byjedul Islam, while the rest of the team will leave the country next week.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has planned the trip so that both the fast bowlers can undergo detailed medical check-up and physical assessment. BCB said that this was not a last minute decision. Before the Australia tour, he had already planned to send those fast bowlers who had minor injuries or who needed fitness check-up.
The Daily Star quoted a Bangladesh team management official as saying, “He is leaving for Perth, where he will undergo an overall scan. Taskin had a number of problems previously, and he needs direct assessment to ensure that there are no problems going forward. His assessment is mostly for prevention, and he is available for selection.”
BCB reveals the real reason behind Nahid Rana’s visit to Australia
Nahid Rana will miss the entire two-match Test series against Australia due to a calf injury. The young fast bowler will now undergo a medical examination in Perth, where doctors will also examine his long-standing shin bone problem in addition to his side strain issue.
Naheed is expected to stay in Australia for about four to five days. After completing his medical assessment, he will return to Bangladesh and begin his rehabilitation from the injury. Meanwhile, BCCI is set to officially confirm the Bangladesh tour soon as the India-Afghanistan series has been delayed.
Cricbuzz quoted a BCB official as saying, “Nahid Rana has been suffering from shin bone pain in both his legs since his early days and he is managing it and playing. We had earlier planned that if we travel to Australia or England, we will sit with a lower limb specialist to assess his shin bone problem.”
As part of that plan, he’s traveling to Australia to sit down with a shinbone specialist, but he’s not traveling there for side-strain issues because his shinbone soreness is an old injury.
Why does Taskin Ahmed’s Australia tour start early?
Meanwhile, the BCB official also revealed why Taskin Ahmed is traveling to Australia. Even though he has been selected for the first Test against Australia, he is not going due to a shoulder injury.
Instead, the senior fast bowler will have to undergo a detailed examination for his ankle problem, which has been troubling him for some time. After the medical evaluation is completed after four to five days, Taskin will stay in Australia and join the Bangladesh team for the two-match Test series.
“Taskin is visiting for an ankle problem that he has previously had at various points in his career, and we want a third opinion about its condition,” he said.