Four members of the Bangladesh ‘A’ team, including three players, were unable to travel with the squad to Qatar on Wednesday for the upcoming Asia Cup Rising Stars tournament due to a delay in visa processing.
The affected players are Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Mahidul Islam Ankon, and Mrittunjoy Chowdhury, along with team analyst Nasir Ahmed Nasu.
“The flight was at 10:45am, but their visas were issued at 11:18am. That’s why they couldn’t fly with the team today. They will now travel to Qatar tomorrow morning,” said Shahriar Nafees, the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s cricket operations in-charge, while speaking to media on Wednesday.
The Asia Cup Rising Stars T20 tournament, featuring eight teams, begins in Doha on November 14. Bangladesh have been drawn in Group A alongside the Hong Kong, China national team, Afghanistan ‘A’, and Sri Lanka ‘A’.
The Akbar Ali-led side will start their campaign against Hong Kong, China on November 15, before facing Afghanistan ‘A’ and Sri Lanka ‘A’ on November 17 and 19 respectively.
Group B features ‘A’ teams from India and Pakistan, as well as the national sides of the UAE and Oman. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals on November 21, with the final scheduled for November 23.
All matches will be played at the West End International Cricket Stadium in Doha.
Bangladesh squad: Akbar Ali (capt), Jishan Alam, Habibur Rahman Sohan, Jawad Abrar, Ariful Islam, Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Mahidul Islam Ankon, Rakibul Hasan, SM Meherob Hossain, Abu Hider Rony, Tufayel Ahmed, Shadhin Islam, Ripon Mondol, Abdul Gaffar Saqlain, and Mrittunjoy Chowdhury.
