Bangladesh axe Mehidy, Rubel in Twenty20 squad shake-up

Bangladesh dropped off-spinner Mehidy Hasan and pace bowler Rubel Hossain in a new-look Twenty20 squad named Tuesday for the first two matches of the tri-nations series against Afghanistan and Zimbabwe. All-rounder Ariful Haque, pace bowler Abu Hider, spinner Nazmul Islam and batsman Mohammad Mithun were also left out from Bangladesh's last Twenty20 squad that played the West Indies in December 2018.

Opening batter Tamim Iqbal was not included after asking for a break from international cricket. "We want to see some players for the next Twenty20 World Cup. This is why we changed the squad," said chief selector Minhajul Abedin.

Young pace bowler Yeasin Arafat and left-arm spinner Taijul Islam received their first Twenty20 call-ups while Afif Hossain and Mahedi Hasan return after playing just one Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka in 2018. Batsmen Sabbir Rahman and Mosaddek Hossain also received a call-up as Bangladesh prepare to begin the series against Zimbabwe in Dhaka's Sher-e Bangla National Stadium on Thursday.

Bangladesh squad: Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Afif Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Taijul Islam, Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman and Yeasin Arafat.