Tamim Iqbal ruled out of one-off Test against Afghanistan

Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal has been ruled out for the one-off Test match against Afghanistan after failing to recover from a recurring back injury. The clash is set to be played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka, starting Wednesday, June 14.

The 34-year-old reportedly had a recurrence of lower back pain during the training session on June 7, after which he was rested from training with his teammates.

Bangladesh Team Physio Muzadded Alpha Sany confirmed the news of Tamim being ruled out of the Afghanistan Test in a statement on Tuesday, June 13.

"Tamim has been experiencing lower back pain which has troubled him from time to time. Our treatment and procedures focused on reducing the pain and improving his functional ability but unfortunately, his condition hasn't improved sufficiently for him to play the Test match. He has felt stiffness and pain while batting and fielding in training and has not been able to complete the physical preparation required to play for five days," said Muzadded.

It is also understood from the BCB chief selector that the team will not name a replacement for Tamim Iqbal and will open with Mahmudul Hasan and Zakir Hasan, both of whom will be making their Test comebacks.

While Mahmudul last played in the longer format for Bangladesh in the second Test against the West Indies in June 2022, Zakir Hasan played in the thrilling second Test against India in December 2022.

Bangladesh will also be without their regular Test captain, Shakib Al Hasan, due to injury, and Litton Das will lead the side in his absence. Ironically, the two teams met only once in the Test format in 2019, with Afghanistan crushing their Asian neighbors by a massive margin of 224 runs.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan star spinner and T20I captain Rashid Khan has also been rested for the game, with the team stating their need to prioritize the 24-year-old's long-term fitness as the reason behind his absence from the squad.

After their battle in the one-off Test, the teams will fight for while-ball supremacy in three ODIs and two T20Is at Chattogram and Sylhet, respectively.

The Bangladesh Tigers are coming off a 2-0 ODI series victory against Ireland in England, while the Afghans lost a three-match ODI series in Sri Lanka 2-1.

---

Bangladesh and Afghanistan Squads for the one-off Test

Bangladesh:

Litton Das (c & wk), Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Zakir Hasan (wk), Tamim Iqbal, Taijul Islam, Mominul Haque, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Taskin Ahmed, Khaled Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Shahadat Hossain, Musfik Hasan, Shoriful Islam.

Afghanistan:

Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmat Shah (vc), Afsar Zazai (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Izharulhaq Naveed, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zahir Khan, Amir Hamza, Bahir Shah, Abdul Malik, Mohammad Ibrahim, Nasir Jamal, Nijat Masood.

Reserves: Noor Ali Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Sayed Shirzad, Zia-ur-Rehman.