Tamim's fitness will decide his Asia Cup participation: BCB

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Operations Chairman Jalal Yunus has revealed that a decision on Tamim Iqbal's participation in the upcoming Asia Cup will depend on his fitness.

The ODI captain is due to take part in the tournament which starts late next month but he is yet to regain full fitness from a back issue and will travel to England for treatment.

"Our current captain Tamim is going to London on the 26th for treatment on his injury. Once he gets a doctor's prognosis we will then make a decision on his participation in the Asia Cup. He will return to the country on the 31st," Jalal told the media on Thursday. 

Bangladesh will have to travel back and forth between Pakistan and Sri Lanka as the Asia Cup is being jointly hosted by the two countries after India chose not to travel to Pakistan due to political tensions between the two countries. 

Jalal spoke about the extra travel for the players have been made as comfortable as possible via chartered flights arranged by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). 

"We have to play the first match at Lahore and then go back to Sri Lanka. There is nothing we can do about it. After the 31st (of August) we have another match on the 3rd of September. The ACC have decided to take us via a chartered flight so that our journey can be comfortable," he said.

"There is an impact on the players with how they travel. I feel, if we travel via air, we can reach our destination 2-3 hours earlier. There needs to be a particular mental preparation for travelling too. Since all other teams have agreed to ACC's decision, we are also having to agree to it," Jalal added.   

Jalal feels the Asia Cup is a will be a good gauge of where the team is leading in to the ODI World Cup later this year in India: "This is a very important tournament for us. You can call it an acid test ahead of the World Cup."

Bangladesh will be entering the Asia Cup as one of the favourites this time and in recent years, they have managed to play in the final of the tournament, although they never won it. 

"Everyone plays to win the tournament. The preparation and mindset is to win the tournament. We have to treat every match as a different challenge," Jalal admitted.  

Despite the weight of expectation on the Tigers, they have had mixed results in ODIs recently, including a shock series defeat against Afghanistan at home earlier this month.

But Jalal felt that there was no added pressure on the players despite the expectations and the recent form. 

"There is no extra pressure on the players. I spoke with them. In sports, there will be a winner and a loser. The players understand that just because they lost a few series doesn't mean the same will keep happening in the future. It's not something that makes the players upset. This is cricket. You may win a series and then lose the next one. They are very much united and a spirited bunch. We just have to be careful with injuries. If everyone stays fit, we should not have much to worry about," he explained. 

Jalal confirmed that Asia Cup squad will be announced by the 30th of this month and that the same team will be playing in the World Cup later this year. 

"A few days ago the chief selector (Minhajul Abedin) said that we will give the initial squad for practice. The camp will continue from the 29th. By 27-28 or 30th... those players will form the Asia Cup squad. I think the Asia Cup team will play the World Cup next," he said.

With the Emerging Asia Cup going on currently, players from the A team will get the opportunity to get selected into the national team for the Asia Cup.

"Some players from the Emerging Asia Cup might be kept in the initial squad. Some of them are doing very well. The final selection will be made later. The initial squad we will field may consist of 2-1 emerging performers. The selection panel will decide when to make the final squad," Jalal added.

One of the big talking points has been the selection of veteran batter Mahmudullah Riyad and Jalal confirmed that the selectors will make a decision on it.

"It will be decided by the selection panel. I think I talked about it with (Minhajul Abedin) Nannu a few days ago," he concluded.