Bangladesh batsman Sabbir Rahman, who returned to the national squad for three-match T20 International series against Afghanistan after a six-month break, said that his suspension from the game has been a blessing for him in working on his fitness level.

The 26-year-old, who made headlines many times for the wrong reasons since making debut for Bangladesh in 2014, was handed six months suspension and fined 20 lakhs ($25,000 approx) for assaulting a fan during a first-class match in Bangladesh.

Rahman, who is known as one of the clean strikers for the ball in Bangladesh, said the ban has given him an opportunity to work on his fitness, and correct some of his technical flaws during the period.

According to a report in Cricbuzz, Sabbir told reporters at Mirpur on Saturday (19 May), “Staying away [from domestic cricket] is not the main thing. I was away for two months. I missed the BCL and Premier League as I could not participate in it.”

The right-hander further added, “I worked on my fitness while there were some technical flaws in my batting that I tried to address during this period. I feel staying away for a while can turn out to be positive. I tried to give time to my family while focused on individual training that I believe will help me to be in good stead for the next couple of years.”

Sabbir signed off by saying, “I will be happy if I can execute the technical changes that I worked on during this time. For me, every day brings a new challenge and I look forward to taking it on my stride.”

Bangladesh and Afghanistan will play a three-match T20I series at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun starting on June 3, followed by second on 5 June and final will be played on 7 June.