Shoriful Islam, who claimed the best bowling figures of 7/48 and set a new Bangladesh record in Australia, has been denied a NOC by the Bangladesh Cricket Board for a stint in county cricket. The left-arm fast bowler has been denied a NOC by the BCB for a spell with Kent in the County Championship.
A report by Cricbuzz stated that Shoriful Islam was expected to join the squad with fellow Bangladeshi pacer Hasan Mahmud, but the BCB refused to release him due to his workload and a packed international calendar. The BCB cricket operations in-charge Shahriar Nafees said the team has five Tests, seven T20Is and six ODIs in the next three months.
BCB Prioritises Shoriful Islam's Fitness Ahead of International Commitments
Nafees has described Shoriful Islam as an 'important asset' for Bangladesh and someone who can play across all three formats. He has suffered a hamstring injury, and the board is adopting a cautious approach with his recovery. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) believes that playing four County Championship matches will put a strain on his body and availability for international matches.
“Shoriful is a guy who plays all formats. He is coming back from a hamstring injury. If we give him an NOC to play four county matches, the amount of pressure it may put on his body, he might not be 100 per cent fit for all those international matches,” Nafees said.
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The management and medical staff have concluded that training and rehabilitation is more important for Shoriful Islam in the current scenario than playing county cricket. They believe it is a better opportunity for the fast bowler to get fit before Bangladesh's busy international schedule kicks off.
Bangladesh pacer Khaled Ahmed has been given an NOC to join Kent for a County Championship stint. Nafees described Khaled as someone who has been approached by the English county and cleared, as he is fit and has not had much match practice in recent times.
With limited game practice recently, Khaled is expected to get the opportunity for match practice and prepare for Bangladesh's international fixtures.