Bangladesh recall Anamul, Taijul for Sri Lanka ODIs

Taijul and Anamul will replace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and wicket-keeper batsman Liton Das, both of whom have been granted leave by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) after the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019. Right-arm pacer Abu Jayed, who was a member of Bangladesh's World Cup squad in England but did not feature in a single game, has been dropped.

Mashrafe Mortaza, Bangladesh's captain during the World Cup, will continue to lead the side. Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah and Mohammad Saifuddin have all been included, having recovered from injuries picked up during the World Cup.

BCB chief selector Minhajul Abedin said that Anamul had been rewarded for his recent performance against Afghanistan A. “Recently, he (Anamul) struck a ton for Bangladesh A," Abedin said. "We hope he’ll be able to replicate the performance. We were also considering Imrul Kayes, but his recent performance is not up to the mark.”

Abedin further added that Taijul Islam joined the squad to fill the left-arm spinner's void in Shakib's absence. "We didn't make big changes from the World Cup squad here. As we don't have Shakib and Liton, we include two players in their places and dropped one player. We need a left-arm spinner, so Taijul is going with the team. He is now playing in India."

Anamul, whose last ODI appearance came against West Indies in July 2018, is eager to make the opportunity count. “I was waiting for this day. Now, my main focus will be to perform well. As a cricketer, I always believe that performing well is the best thing I can do for the team,” Anamul toldUNB.

Bangladesh will tour Sri Lanka without the services of Steve Rhodes, who officially departed from his position of head coach after the World Cup. The BCB has indicated that Khaled Mahmud, Bangladesh's manager during the World Cup, could fill in on a temporary basis.

Bangladesh Squad: Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Mohammad Mithun, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Sabbir Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Anamul Haque Bijoy, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Saifuddin and Taijul Islam.