Mashrafe Mortaza named in preliminary squad for tri-series

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza is set to make his return from injury after being named in a preliminary squad for next month's home tri-series featuring Sri Lanka and India. Mortaza, who picked up the injury in the West Indies, missed the home ODIs against Zimbabwe in October and November after failing to recover in time from a knee surgery. Shakib Al Hasan led the team in his absence.

Opening batsman Tamim Iqbal was also included, following fears that he may be ruled out due a fractured hand. He had injured his left hand while batting against Zimbabwe in an ODI in Chittagong on November 5 but continued playing despite medical advice not to.

The squad also featured players who severed ties with the unofficial Indian Cricket League - batsman Aftab Ahmed, opener Shahriar Nafees and Alok Kapali.

The original squad featured 26 players, but was subsequently reduced to 18. The final squad will be named on 31 December.

Junaid Siddique, Mehrab Hossain jnr, Enamul Haque jnr, Sahagir Hossain, Dolar Mahmud, Robiul Islam, Dhiman Ghosh and Mahbubul Alam were the players dropped from the original squad of 26.

Preliminary squad: Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (capt), Shakib Al Hasan (vice-captain), Mohammad Ashraful, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Tamim Iqbal, Syed Rasel, Raqibul Hasan, Mahmudullah, Nazmul Hossain, Naeem Islam, Imrul Kayes, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam, Shahriar Nafees, Aftab Ahmed, Alok Kapali