Shanto flies to Dubai for Afghan Test

Bangladesh Test captain Najmul Hossain Shanto flies to Dubai on Monday to join the squad ahead of the one-off Test against Afghanistan after recovering from the illness that forced him to leave the Asian Games early.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Cricket Operations Manager Shahriar Nafees confirmed that Shanto will leave Dhaka at 6pm and join the squad in Dubai before travelling to Abu Dhabi. He is expected to get two days of preparation before the Test begins on 9 October at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium.

Shanto returned to Bangladesh from Aichi-Nagoya after a persistent fever ruled him out of Bangladesh’s Asian Games campaign. His absence had raised doubts over his availability for the Afghanistan Test.

The left-handed batter did not travel with the rest of the Test squad when they left for the UAE on 1 October. Instead, he remained in Dhaka to complete his recovery and undergo medical assessments.

After receiving clearance from the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) medical department, the 28-year-old resumed preparations at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. He trained at the Academy Ground in Mirpur on Sunday, focusing on batting ahead of the Afghanistan assignment.

Bangladesh are currently playing a two-day practice match against the UAE under vice-captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who has been leading the side in Shanto’s absence.

The Bangladesh skipper scored 84, 31 and 0 in his last two Tests against Australia in Darwin and Mackay, while he also made 37 and 0 against a Cricket Australia XI in a tour match.