Dhaka: Uncertainty loomed over Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan's availability for the upcoming tour of India after country's cricket board chief Nazmul Hassan questioned his attitude amid reports that he is set to be banned for not reporting a corrupt approach two years ago.
The star all-rounder could reportedly be banned for 18 months by the ICC, compounding the Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) problems ahead of the tour of India. The assignment, comprising three T20 Internationals and two Tests, starts on 3 November.
File image of Shakib Al Hasan. Getty Images
According to one of the country's leading Bengali dailies Samakal, "It was on the insistence of ICC that Shakib has been kept away from practice by the BCB. That's the reason he neither featured in the practice games nor did he join the meeting late on Monday evening with the president to discuss pink-ball Test."
Two years ago, Shakib reportedly received an offer from a bookie before an international match, which he did not report to the ICC's Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU).
The ICC has refrained from making any comment at this stage. According to the newspaper, Shakib had confessed about it to the ACSU's investigating officers recently.
BCB chief Hassan seemed livid with the 32-year-old Shakib, unarguably one of the greats of the game in Bangladesh with more than 11,000 runs and over 500 wickets across three formats.
"Everything is murky. If someone doesn't want to go, there is no issue if they communicate early. There is a kind of feeling of being indispensable within the team. Attitude has to be right," Hassan told Daily Star.
"This (attitude) was not there before. There may be a logical reason and I will see to those later. Right now, my concern is the India tour. I am not worried about the pipeline. We have many players," he asserted.
There has been uncertainty over Shakib's availability for the India assignments after he missed the pre-tour camp, including a practice game, in Mirpur.
The squad is set to leave for India on Wednesday and Shakib is not going to be a part of the touring party.
In his absence, senior-most player Mushfiqur Rahim might lead the team in Tests while one among Mahmudullah Riyadh Mosaddek Hosain is set to be the skipper in the three T20 Internationals.
The development only adds to the problems of BCB, which is trying to convince its players to agree to BCCI president Sourav Ganguly's proposal for a day-night Test with pink ball at the Eden Gardens.
Bangladesh begin their India tour with the three T20Is, starting on 3 November , before heading to Indore to kick off their World Test Championship campaign from 14 November.
The second Test at Eden Gardens begins from 22 November.
Shakib recently spearheaded a players' strike before calling it off after the BCB assured that their demands, including a pay hike, will be fulfilled.
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