Litton trains 'without discomfort', practice match call due on Thursday

Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das completed a full training session on Wednesday without any discomfort, raising hopes of his return ahead of the first Test against Australia.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) chief selector Habibul Bashar confirmed that Litton came through both batting and wicketkeeping drills unscathed, with a decision on his participation in the three-day practice match against Cricket Australia XI to be taken on Thursday morning.

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"Litton completed a session today and looks without discomfort. He also had a wicketkeeping session. A decision on whether he will play the practice match will be taken on the morning of the match," Bashar told The Daily Star on Wednesday.

Bangladesh begin their lone warm-up fixture against Cricket Australia XI at DXC Arena in Darwin on Thursday before the first Test gets underway on August 13.

Litton sustained a calf muscle injury during Bangladesh's ODI series in Australia, forcing him to miss the subsequent T20I series against the hosts as well as the white-ball tour of Zimbabwe. However, after making encouraging progress in his recovery, he was included in Bangladesh's Test squad for the Australia series.

The wicketkeeper-batter's fitness has been one of Bangladesh's biggest concerns ahead of the two-Test series, with pace bowlers Nahid Rana and Shoriful Islam already sidelined from the opening Test through injury.

Following the three-day practice match, Bangladesh are scheduled to resume training at DXC Arena on August 9, 10 and 11 before holding their final training session at TIO Stadium on August 12, a day before the opening Test.