'Just preparing for the football World Cup'

“Nothing much, just preparing for the football World Cup,” Bangladesh middle-order batter Tawhid Hridoy joked on Facebook on Sunday, sharing photos of national team players kicking a football around at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur.

The laughing emojis accompanying his post did their job but the joke landed a little too close to home. In a parallel universe -- one without the ICC-BCB standoff -- this would have been the final stretch of preparations before Bangladesh boarded a flight for the ICC T20 World Cup, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka and set to begin on February 7.

Instead, Sunday saw the national team and players on the fringes of selection assemble in Mirpur for a fitness test. Timed runs were followed by a regulation football session, where the likes of Mushfiqur Rahim, Tanzim Sakib and Hridoy himself appeared to be in good spirits. Officially, the idea was to prepare for the Odommo Bangladesh T20 Cup 2026, scheduled to begin on February 5.

With competitive cricket effectively on pause, particularly after Bangladesh were replaced by Scotland in the upcoming T20 World Cup following the team’s decision not to travel to India due to security concerns, Sunday’s session marked a tentative return to organised cricketing activity after the Bangladesh Premier League.

Test skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto and star pacer Mustafizur Rahman were absent from the session and are expected to undergo fitness tests at a later date.
 

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has arranged the three-team tournament to compensate for the national side’s lack of international fixtures after missing out on the World Cup.

Later in the afternoon, the squads were announced. Dhumketu XI will be led by Bangladesh T20 captain Litton Das, Durbar XI by Najmul Hossain Shanto, and Duronto XI by Akbar Ali.

Practice sessions are scheduled for February 3 and 4, with the tournament running from February 5 to February 9, when the final will be played.  

Dhumketu XI: Litton Das (c), Tanzid Tamim, Saif Hassan, Parvez Emon, Tawhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Sakib, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam 

Durbar XI: Habibur Rahman Sohan, Afif Hossain Dhrubo, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Nurul Hasan Sohan, Tanvir Islam, Allis Al Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Saifuddin, Khaled Ahmed, Al Fahad

Duronto XI: Jishan Alam, Zawad Abrar, Mahfijul Islam Robin, Ariful Islam, Mahidul Islam Ankon, Akbar Ali (c), Azizul Hakim Tamim, Ripon Mondol, Abdul Gaffar Saqlain, S M Meherob Hossain, Rakibul Hasan, Nahid Rana, Iqbal Hossain Emon