Sabbir breaks into squad as Bangladesh call up Miraz, Nurul, Rabbi for first England Test

Bangladesh have selected a squad packed with new prodigies for the first Test against England in which allrounder Mehedi Hasan Miraz, limited-overs specialist Sabbir Hossain and wicketkeeper-batsman Nurul Hasan have made the cut.

Pacer Kamrul Islam Rabbi, too, was roped in as the Bangladesh Cricket Board announced a 14-strong squad on Sunday.

Miraz led the under-19 team in the Youth World Cup earlier this year. He now is on the verge of earning his first Test cap in Chittagong where he played the first match of that tournament in January.

A regular face among the Tigers' limited-overs pack, Sabbir was a surprise inclusion as well, while pacer Shafiul Islam and offspinning allrounder Shuvagata Hom Chowdhury returned to the squad.

Bangladesh have made a total of six changes to the squad that featured against South Africa last year with injured Mustafizur Rahman, Jubair Hossain, Liton Kumar Das, Mohammad Shahid, Nasir Hossain or Rubel Hossain left out in the cold this time around.

The squad against England has just two pacers while the selection hints at a three-pronged spin attack.

Although under-19 skipper Miraz is a genuine allrounder, his skills with the ball contributed largely to his addition.

With southpaws Shakib Al Hasan and Taijul Islam already in the team, the selectors did not want go for another left-arm spinner.

They opted for the offspin of 18-year-old Miraz and Shuvagata. Their selections can be backed by the fact that England have a number of left-handed batsmen.

Miraz grabbed 41 wickets in 12 first-class matches, 30 of them coming from five games of the last national league. With the bat, he has averaged 40.30 from 14 innings, including five half-centuries.

Paceman Kamrul has been in the domestic scene for a few years. The 24-year-old broke into the Bangladesh squad in the limited-overs series against Zimbabwe last year, but never made his debut.

He has 103 wickets from 47 first-class matches.

Right-arm seamer Shafiul last played a Test in November 2014 in Chittagong where he had also made his debut in 2010. After a break in international appearances, he made his way back to the team in the series against Afghanistan. The Test call-up completes his return.

Mushfiqur Rahim played his last three Tests with the wicketkeeping gloves off as Liton replaced him behind the stumps. Liton, however, has picked up a shoulder injury in the national league, so he was left out and replaced with Nurul.

Nurul is being viewed as the best wicketkeeper of the country for some time. Before getting into the national team, he was considered a Twenty20 specialist. But the 22-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman lost a spot with the Tigers after not living up to the billing in six T20 Internationals.

He, however, has an impressive first-class record with an average of 41.81 in 49 matches which include five centuries.

The first Test between Bangladesh and England begins on Thursday.

Squad:

Mushfiqur Rahim (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Mominul Haque, Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan, Mehedi Hasan Miraz, Sabbir Rahman, Soumya Sarkar, Taijul Islam, Shuvagata Hom Chowdhury, Shafiul Islam, Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Nurul Hasan.