Morad, Shahadat earn maiden call-ups for New Zealand Tests Left-arm spinner Hasan Morad was rewarded for his excellent performance in the first class cricket by earning a maiden call up in Bangladesh squad for two-match Test series against New Zealand.

The 22-year-old has made an impressive start to his first-class career and has taken 121 wickets from 25 matches since his debut for Chattogram Division in 2021, reports BSS.

The selection panel led by Minhajul Abedin Nannu also called up Morad's Chattogram Division teammates top order batter Shahadat Hossain Dipu and pace bowler Hasan Mahmud for the Test series.

Hasan has already been a regular face for Bangladesh in ODI and T20 cricket while Shahadat played only T20 International for the side.

Regular captain Shakib Al Hasan was ruled out of the Test series with fractured finger, sustained during World Cup and vice captain Liton Das was granted a month's leave to be with his wife and newborn baby.

Tamim Iqbal as usually stayed away from the cricket while fast bowlers Taskin Ahmed and Ebadot Hossain were sidelined with respective injuries. Najmul Hossain Shanto will lead Bangladesh in the two-match Test series against New Zealand.

The 25-year-old left-hander will become the 13th cricketer to captain Bangladesh in Tests.

Bangladesh brought back Nurul Hasan Sohan to act as wicket-keeper in the place of Liton Das.

The first match gets underway at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium (SICS) on November 28.

The second Test begins at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur on December 6. The Tests are a part of the 2023-25 ICC World Test Championship and the first WTC series for Bangladesh in the new cycle.

Squad: Najmul Hossain Shanto (Captain), Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Zakir Hasan, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Quazi Nurul Hasan Sohan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Naeem Hasan, Syed Khaled Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Shahadat Hossain Dipu, Hasan Morad.

Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim is set to feature for Fortune Barishal in the forthcoming Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

Mushfiqur had played for Sylhet Strikers in the last edition. His price was fixed at 80 lakhs in the players' draft according to the category. Which means he was in 'A' category.

The top category player will play along with other star players like Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Khaled Ahmed in Fortune Barishal.

Neymar said he was relishing “new challenges and opportunities in new places” after he joined Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year deal Tuesday, becoming the latest big name lured to the oil-rich Gulf state.

The Brazil forward, 31, ends a six-year stay in the French capital and follows in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane in swapping Europe for the Middle East.

“I have achieved a lot in Europe and enjoyed special times, but I have always wanted to be a global player and test myself with new challenges and opportunities in new places,” Neymar said in a statement from the Saudi Pro League.

“I want to write new sporting history, and the Saudi Pro League has tremendous energy and quality players at the moment,” he added.

Neymar was “in negotiations” on Sunday to become the latest football superstar to decamp for Saudi Arabia, leaving Paris Saint-Germain just as Kylian Mbappe was brought back in from the cold by the French champions.

A source close to PSG told AFP that 31-year-old Neymar “no longer figures in the club or manager’s plans” with the Brazilian immediately linked to Al-Hilal in the Gulf kingdom.

Another source in Saudi Arabia said that “direct negotiations” between Neymar’s agents and the Public Investment Fund (PIF) were ongoing.