Injured Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe joins practice

IANS

Dhaka, Oct 5 (IANS) Showing strong signs of recovery after hurting his ankle against Afghanistan, Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza took part in a training session with the team on Wednesday.

Mashrafe, who turned 33 on Wednesday, bowled at the nets under the close watch of bowling mentor Courtney Walsh, reports bdnews24.com.

The strapping pacer suffered an awkward fall in his delivery stride and hurt his ankle badly in the third One-Day match against Afghanistan last Saturday.

The pain has eased over the days while the swelling, too, has reduced, but Mashrafe is still dealing with the mental hurdles of his recovery.

"I bowled four overs and didn't have much problem. I feel the pain if my foot lands in an angle but the soreness is no longer there," Mashrafe said after practice.

"But there is some uneasiness mentally; specially during landing after the delivery stride, I feel I might get hurt again. It's difficult to bowl naturally with the feeling in the back of the mind. Let's see, maybe it'll be okay after bowling a bit tomorrow."

After falling face down in Saturday's match, Mashrafe got treated on the ground, finished his over and went off the field for an over.

He then bowled four more overs and returned 1-15 from six overs.

--IANS

sam/dg

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