Bangladesh have suffered a major setback in their ongoing ODI series against Zimbabwe after keeper-batter Litton Das has been ruled out of the remainder of the three-match contest due to a hamstring injury. He was initially expected to miss only the opening ODI on July 6, but his recovery has not progressed enough for him to return during the series. The Bangladesh batter will now continue his rehabilitation in Dhaka instead of joining the squad for the remaining matches, as ESPNcricinfo reported.
Meanwhile, the absence of Litton comes at a difficult time for Bangladesh, who suffered a 25-run defeat in the opening match of the series. The visitors will now need to find a way to level the contest on July 9, or else will suffer an embarrassing series defeat. They struggled in the one-off Test as well, suffering a defeat by an innings and 85 runs.ย
Parvez Hossain Emon named as replacement
In the meantime, Bangladesh have already announced Littonโs replacement for the series. Parvez Hossain Emon has been called up as his replacement for the remaining two matches of the series.ย On the other hand, Bangladesh physiotherapist Bayjedul Islam Khan confirmed that Litton underwent a fitness assessment but was unable to prove his readiness to take part in the upcoming matches.
โLitton had already missed the first ODI and is still not match fit. He underwent a fitness test today and the outcome was not satisfactory. With back-to-back ODIs coming up, we don’t think he will make sufficient progress to play any part in the series,โ Bangladesh physio Bayjedul Islam Khan said in a statement.
It is believed that Bangladesh donโt want to rush Litton at the moment and give him sufficient time to recover from the injury. He is a vital cog in the batting unit and with the series against Australia, South Africa and India lined up, they are in no mood to risk him at the moment.ย
Bangladesh, however, will look for a better batting show in the second ODI. Chasing only 142 runs in Harare, they were bundled out for 116 runs, which isnโt acceptable in modern cricket. Only three of their batters scored in double digits, which is also highly concerning.
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