Bangladesh suffered a huge blow at the start of their virtual semifinal clash against Pakistan as ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was ruled out with a broken little finger and sent back home.
Bangladesh made three changes with Shakib being the forced one. Soumya Sarkar, Rubel Hossain and Mominul Haque replaced Nazmul Islam, Nazmul Hossain Shanto and Shakib al Hasan for Wednesday's game at Abu Dhabi.
"He will be out for four to six weeks," Akram said. "The pain had increased over the last few days and physio Thihan Chandramohan tried his best to get him on the field, but the pain was too much. I would like to thank Shakib for playing the first four matches with the pain he had."
It must be mentioned that Shakib came into the tournament with a fracture in his finger and he, in fact, was unwilling to be a part of the Asia Cup squad, stating his fractured finger needed surgery. Shakib sustained the injury in the T20 tri-series final against Sri Lankan in January.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board, however, did not pay heed to the senior all-rounder’s request and included him in the Asia Cup squad.
Bangladesh’s Asia Cup campaign has been a mix-bag. They started off with a commanding victory over Sri Lanka but then lost to Afghanistan and India. Requiring two wins to stand a chance to make it to the finals, they edged Afghanistan out in a thrilling Super 4 game to set-up a virtual semi-final with Pakistan.
The final of the Asia Cup will be played at the Dubai International Stadium on September 28.