Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has confirmed that Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes have been included in squad for the ongoing Asia Cup.

Bangladesh’s nosedive after losing all-important opener Tamim Iqbal to injury continues unabated as they fail to bat out 50 overs for the third consecutive occasion and are shot out for a sub-par 173 by India in their Asia Cup Super Four match.

India skipper Rohit Sharma wins the toss and asks Bangladesh to bat in their Asia Cup Super Four match in Dubai

The Bangladesh-Afghanistan Asia Cup encounter in Abu Dhabi on Thursday was marred by the fact that the organisers, the Asian Cricket Council, made a last-minute change to the Super Four fixtures on Wednesday morning. They determined the group champions and runners-up of each group before they were decided on the field and named the Super Four fixtures.

The 136-run loss against Afghanistan may have been in an inconsequential match in the context of the Asia Cup as – rightly or wrongly – the Asian Cricket Council had already decided the group placements beforehand, but the manner of Thursday’s defeat should be concerning for Bangladesh nonetheless because it exposed a lack of depth in the reserves.

It is hard to believe that Rashid Khan is only 20 years old. The Afghanistan leg-spinner has already taken 112 wickets in 49 matches, two of those on his 20th birthday against Bangladesh on Thursday, and is sitting pretty atop the ICC ODI bowlers rankings.

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza admitted to being confused during their 136-run thrashing at the hands of Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi on Thursday in their last Asia Cup Group B match.

Afghan leg-spin sensation Rashid Khan added an unexpected cameo with the bat to his customary incisiveness with the ball to help Afghanistan blow away Bangladesh by 136 runs in the final Asia Cup Group B match at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi yesterday.

Wicketkeeper batsman Nurul Hasan slammed a hundred on the second day of the four-day practice match between two High Performance Squads at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna.

Not many could have pointed a finger at Bangladesh if they did not put their all into yesterday's match against Afghanistan. As has by now been well documented, the Asian Cricket Council's decision to announce the Super Four matches even before the group champions and runners-up of the two Asia Cup groups were determined has cast the ongoing tournament in a bad light.

One characteristic of the Bangladesh team that most will agree upon is that they are an emotional bunch, and performance often depends on whether they harness the emotion or their passions rule them. When they take on India in the Asia Cup Super Four match in Dubai today, it would be hard to imagine that it will not be an emotional affair.

Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan won the toss and elected to field in their last Asia Cup Group B match against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi.

The last time that Bangladesh played Afghanistan in the ODI format, Tamim Iqbal had hit a run-a-ball century to give the Tigers a commanding total. Tigers went on to win by 141 runs in that game in 2016.

The last session of the first four-day match of the new season, between two High Performance (HP) squads, was called off due to a poor outfield at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna yesterday.

Even when Bangladesh seemed to be doing everything right, circumstances have conspired against them. They take on Afghanistan today in their last Asia Cup Group B match in Abu Dhabi AT 5:30pm Bangladesh time, having already qualified for the next stage.

What increasingly appears to be favouritism towards cricketing powerhouse India has turned the Asia Cup into a near farce. Even with two group matches left and Group A and Group B champions yet to be decided, on Wednesday morning the Asian Cricket Council has published the fixtures list of the Super Four stage starting on Friday.

Bangladesh had been looking for stable opening partner for Tamim Iqbal and tried out a few options over the past few months, especially in ODI format. With Tamim himself now injured, Tigers will have to look to play the rest of the Asia Cup counting on Liton Das, who himself is looking to prove his mettle in the ODI format while Nazmul Hossain Shanto, yet to play any ODIs, is likely get the nod to open with Liton.

Honourable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called up Bangladesh’s injured opener Tamim Iqbal today at his residence and asked about his well-being.

What increasingly appears to be favouritism towards cricketing powerhouse India has turned the Asia Cup into a near farce. Even with two group matches left and Group A and Group B champions yet to be decided, on Wednesday morning the Asian Cricket Council has published the fixtures list of the Super Four stage starting on Friday.

Tamim Iqbal has not only been able to give Bangladesh a good start in recent times but has also been able to provide the backbone to the Bangladesh innings. In his absence Tigers need someone to open along with Liton Das and coach Steve Rhodes saw opportunity for Mominul Haque and Nazmul Hossain Shanto and felt confident on both their ability to do well.