'We will miss Tamim in T20 WC'

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced the 15-man squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup today. Veteran opener Tamim Iqbal was missing from the list as the southpaw opted out of the T20 WC as he hasn't played in the shortest format in the last 18 months.

BCB Chief Selector Minhajul Abedin Nannu said the team will miss Tamim Iqbal's experience and presence in the World Cup.

"It is unfortunate that we are going without a player of Tamim Iqbal's calibre. We will miss him," said Nannu at the press conference on Thursday.

"Initially, we were confident that Tamim would be playing in the World Cup but then he suddenly withdrew his name."

"Those who got the opportunity, definitely they have the ability to do well. We are confident about our openers Mohammad Naim, Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar," Nannu added. 

Tamim cited game time as one of the major reasons behind opting out of the T20 World Cup. He also thought it wouldn't be fair for the other batters who have played well in his absence and he swooping in the World Cup squad without playing a T20I match in 18 months.

"Game time is one of the biggest reasons. I haven't been playing in this format for some time now," Tamim explained. 

"I've missed a handful number of matches in last year and a half. I think it'll be unfair to suddenly replace the players who've played in my position during this time and did pretty well," Tamim added.

All the 15 players included in the squad and the two reserved players are currently part of the ongoing New Zealand series. 

This same group of T20I players toured Zimbabwe, won series against Australia at home last month. The team go into the tournament high on confidence after historic series wins over Australia and New Zealand.