Expatriates announce Bangladesh’s women’s world cup squad
New Zealand set an exemplary precedent in announcing their World Cup squad in a unique manner. Last year, they had the squad for the ODI World Cup revealed by cricketers’ children, wives, and parents. Earlier, two children were chosen to announce their T20 World Cup team. Now, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has also introduced a different approach, as expatriates announced the 15-member squad for the Women’s T20 World Cup.
The announcement of the squad was pre-scheduled, and a press conference was held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on Wednesday. Prior to this, at the designated time of 12:30 pm, the BCB revealed the squad on their social media platforms, which was later displayed on a large screen before the commencement of the press conference.
At the start of the video, BCB’s head of the women’s division and former national team captain Habibul Bashar introduced himself and explained the concept behind having expatriates announce the squad. A Bangladeshi expatriate residing in Canada announced the names of Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana Joty and young pacer Marufa Akter.
Subsequently, expatriates living in various countries took turns announcing the names of Jahanara Alam, Nahida Akter, Shorna Akter, Murshida Khatun, and Ritu Moni. Bangladeshi expatriates from Canada, South Africa, Malaysia, and the UAE announced the names of the cricketers in the Women’s T20 World Cup squad, while also sending their best wishes to the team. At the end of the video, Bangladesh men’s national cricket team captain Najmul Hossain Shanto also extended his well wishes to the women’s team.
The Women’s T20 World Cup is set to commence in the UAE on 3 October, with the tournament concluding on 20 October. Joty and her team will depart for the tournament on 26 September. Initially, the World Cup was scheduled to be held in Bangladesh. However, following the recent political changes, the event was shifted to the UAE. Nonetheless, Bangladesh will remain the official host of the women’s World Cup.
In the Women’s T20 World Cup, ten teams will compete, divided into two groups. Bangladesh, placed in Group B, will face Scotland, England, West Indies, and South Africa. The team will play its opening match against Scotland on 3 October. In the remaining group-stage matches, Bangladesh will play against England on 5 October, West Indies on 10 October, and South Africa on 12 October. Bangladesh’s first three group-stage matches will be held in Sharjah, with the final match taking place in Dubai.
Bangladesh Squad for the Women’s T20 World Cup: Nigar Sultana Joty (captain), Nahida Akter, Murshida Khatun, Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni, Sobhana Mostary, Rabeya Khan, Sultana Khatun, Fahima Khatun, Marufa Akter, Jahanara Alam, Dilara Akter, Taz Nehar, Sathi Rani, Disha Biswas.
