IND v BAN 2024: Shakib Al Hasan doubtful for second Test; Bangladesh selector shares update on all-rounder's injury

Shakib injured his finger while batting in the opening Test at Chepauk.

Bangladesh are sweating over the availability of Shakib Al Hasan for the second Test match against India, slated to be held in Kanpur from September 27.

Shakib injured his finger while batting in the opening Test at Chepauk when he was hit by a Jasprit Bumrah delivery. His participation in the final Test will be determined after a medical assessment.

With 4600 runs and 242 wickets to his name in the longest format, Shakib is considered as the most valuable player for Bangladesh.

“We are heading to Kanpur tomorrow (Tuesday) and today is a day off. We will have two sessions afterwards and we will judge after that (regarding Shakib’s availability in second Test) and we don’t want to make a decision yet,” Hannan Sarkar, a member of BCB’s selection panel, said on Monday (September 23).

“These two days, the physio has kept him under observation. When we get back to the ground, we will get the physio’s feedback. We have to think before picking Shakib for the next match and there is time before the next match. We will see what condition he is in,” he added.

Shakib bowled only 21 overs across the two Indian innings in Chennai and failed to claim a wicket. There were suggestions that he was carrying a finger injury going into the Test match but Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto dismissed such claims, saying that other bowlers were preferred over the all-rounder as they were in a better rhythm.

Hannan also confirmed that Shakib Al Hasan was perfectly fine before the start of the first Test match in Chennai.

“We know the pain in his hand is being discussed. It was not there before the match and many have tried to explain it in different ways. But before the match, we got a 100 percent clearance from the physio before taking him. He was a 100 percent fit then,” he said.

“You can’t say it’s an injury. The discomfort he felt in that finger was not there before the match. He felt that when he started to bowl,” he further remarked.

Bangladesh suffered a crushing 280-run defeat at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. As a result, the visitors conceded an unassailable 1-0 lead to India in the two-match series.

(With Firstpost Inputs)