Sports Desk: Discussions and criticisms about Mohammad Saifuddin not being in the World Cup team have not stopped yet. Chief selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu explained on the day of the team announcement. Captain Nazmul Hossain Shanto has faced the same question this time.
After the official photo session on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe and captain Shanto came to the press conference together. When asked why Tanjim Hasan Shakib was taken instead of Saifuddin, Shanto said that Saifuddin could not live up to expectations.
Shanto said, ‘Tanjim Shakib’s speed is more than Saifuddin’s. It was more or less what we expected from Saifuddin. Shakib will be effective wherever we play.
The two were close. The team has thought. We feel that Tanzeem Shakib can do better for the team,” added Shanto.
Chief selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu spoke in the same tone yesterday: ‘Everyone here fought very closely. The group I gave on the 30th was given in context. There were two thoughts about making the team with current cricketers. Another thought was to see how cricketers like Saifuddin do when they come back from injury. Our place of trust. There, Tanzim was slightly ahead of Saifuddin. That’s why we kept him on the team.
Saifuddin played four matches in the recently concluded Zimbabwe series. The first three were in Chittagong, and the last match was in Dhaka. He was excellent in the first match in Chittagong, taking three wickets for 15 runs. Saifuddin’s performances in the next three matches were 37 for 1, 42 for 3, and 55 for 1, respectively.
It was Saifuddin’s fault that he gave up runs at a crucial time in the last match. Bangladesh lost this match in the end. On the other hand, Tanjim Hasan Shakib played two matches. He took 1 wicket with 26 runs in the 1st match in Chittagong; he did not get any wicket with 42 runs in the 4th match in Dhaka.
