The full contingent of the Bangladesh national cricket team reached Pakistan in two separate groups for a three-match T20 International series when Mustafizur's injury deepens Tigers’ crisis.
The first batch of 10 men including coaching staff and players reached on Sunday and rest of the players of the quad reached on Monday while Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Rishad Hossain, who played in the PSL, have also joined the team's camp after the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final.
Boh the group went Pakistan straight from the UAE, where Bangladesh played a three-match T20 series last week and lost by 2-1 ahead of their upcoming Pakistan tour to start from tomorrow.
The three T20 matches are scheduled to be held on May 28, 30 and June 1. Lahore Gaddafi Stadium will host all three matches.
According to the schedule, Bangladesh have two practice sessions ahead of the three-match series in Lahore on May 26 and 27.
Meanwhile, Tigers saw another big blow, as the left-arm pacer was ruled out of upcoming T20I series against Pakistan because of a thumb injury, as he is the third player to become unavailable for the series following Nahid Rana had withdrawn for personal reasons and Soumya Sarkar injured his back.
However, following an effective spell in the IPL, Bangladesh may have been keen on a similar impact from Mustafizur Rahman in the upcoming three-match T20I series against Pakistan, but the ace fast bowler suffered the injury during IPL 2025 as Khaled Ahmed has been named his replacement.
Mustafizur's replacement Khaled has had a productive 2024-25 season, taking 77 wickets at 21.74 in all formats of competitive cricket. He took 20 wickets at an average of 21.55 in the recent BPL season.
Mustafizur was hit on his left hand while playing for Delhi Capitals against Punjab Kings on May 24 while attempting a caught and bowled off Josh Inglis. According to the Bangladesh physio Delowar Hossain, the injury could take up to three weeks to heal.
"Mustafizur suffered a clip fracture on his left thumb while playing his last match of the Indian Premier League yesterday," Hossain said. "This injury requires a period of rest and rehabilitation. As per our current assessment, he will be unavailable for selection for the next two to three weeks. We will conduct a follow-up evaluation after two weeks to monitor his recovery progress."
