The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has officially unveiled the 15-member squad for the first two One-Day Internationals against New Zealand. These matches are scheduled to be held this Thursday and Saturday at the Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

Tamim Iqbal, who hasn’t played since his retirement U-turn against Afghanistan in July, and Mahmudullah, who last featured in an ODI against England in March, are back in the squad.

Shakib al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed, Hasan Mahmud, and Shoriful Islam have been rested for the upcoming series.

The squad also sees the return of Soumya Sarkar and Nurul Hasan, alongside the inclusion of Zakir Hasan, Khaled Ahmed, and Rishad Hossain.

Notable exclusions from the squad include Mohammad Naim, Afif Hossain, and Shamim Hossain, as confirmed by the BCB.

The decision to rest key players is made in consideration of the upcoming World Cup in India, focusing on ensuring the physical and mental fitness of the cricketers, according to chief selector Minhajul Abedin.

Minhajul Abedin sees this series against New Zealand as an opportunity to evaluate other players before the major event. Zakir, Khaled, and Rishad bring different strengths to the team.

Historically, Bangladesh has performed well against New Zealand in ODIs, winning their previous home series 4-0 in 2010 and 3-0 in 2013. Following the ODI series, New Zealand will play two Test matches in Bangladesh after the World Cup.

The Bangladesh team will commence training for the three-match ODI series against New Zealand on Tuesday, following their participation in the Asia Cup. They have won two games in the tournament and lost thrice.

After the third and final ODI against New Zealand on September 26, Bangladesh will shift their focus to World Cup warm-up matches against Sri Lanka and England on September 29 and October 2, respectively, in Guwahati.

Bangladesh’s World Cup campaign begins on October 7 in Dharamsala, where they face Afghanistan.