Mustafizur's injury deepens Tigers’ crisis

Mustafizur Rahman looked a class above the rest of the Bangladesh pacers against hosts UAE in their recent T20I series. The left-arm pacer featured in the series opener before departing for an Indian Premier League (IPL) stint, but not before playing a crucial hand in the Tigers' solitary win in the three matches.

Following an effective spell in the IPL, Bangladesh may have been keen on a similar impact from the left-arm pacer in the upcoming three-match T20I series against Pakistan in Lahore, starting on May 28. However, already cleaning the wounds of the UAE series, the Tigers have received a pretty big blow yesterday, as Mustafizur was ruled out of the Pakistan tour.

"Mustafizur suffered a clip fracture on his left thumb while playing his last match of the Indian Premier League yesterday [Saturday]... As per our current assessment, he will be unavailable for selection for the next two to three weeks," BCB physio Delowar Hossain Siva was quoted as saying in the press release provided by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).

Khaled Ahmed, not quite a regular face in white-ball formats, has replaced Mustafizur in the squad.

Known as "the Fizz" for his ability to deceive batters, his absence was felt in the remainder of the two T20Is against UAE. Against an opponent like Pakistan, the 29-year-old was set to play a pivotal role.

No other Bangladesh bowler bar Mustafizur had an economy rate under five in the UAE T20Is. Even in the first T20I, UAE looked good to chase down Bangladesh's score of 191 before Mustafizur stepped in to stem the flow of runs.

Just a day after the first T20I in UAE on May 17, he flew to Delhi the day after and appeared in his first IPL game this season. But he had taken everything on his stride. The pace variations kept him effective -- not just the back-of-the-hand slowers but also on-pace deliveries.

Given his guile, Delhi Capitals skipper Faf du Plessis had used Mustafizur in different kinds of game phases. Among players who featured in only three IPL games this season, he ended with one of the highest bowling impact scores per match.

It is a big hit for the Tigers, given the rest of the pacers have been in disarray. When the pressure is on, Fizz is the one they turn to in shorter formats, and it means the Pakistan tour just got a bit more difficult.