Bangladesh Recall Rumana Ahmed, Jahanara Alam for Women's Asia Cup

Bangladesh's women's cricket team has recalled experienced duo Rumana Ahmed and Jahanara Alam for the upcoming Women's Asia Cup, scheduled to begin next month. The decision comes after Bangladesh suffered consecutive T20I series defeats to Australia (3-0) and India (5-0).

Rumana, an all-rounder, and Jahanara, a seamer, have played 134 and 130 internationals, respectively. However, they had been omitted from the squad for over a year as the selectors focused on building a younger team.

Their impressive performances in the Dhaka Premier Division Women's Cricket League (DPDWCL) have prompted their recall. Jahanara emerged as the tournament's leading wicket-taker with 25 scalps in nine matches, while Rumana claimed 17 wickets.

"Rumana and Jahanara were out of the team for 12 months. We have to keep in mind that there is very little training facilities for our female cricketers, so it is to their credit that they held on to their fitness," said women's chief selector Sajjad Ahmed. "They performed very well in the Premier League. It is a good news for us that we can get their experience in our squad, which allows us to have a balanced squad."

The squad also includes call-ups for opener Ishma Tanjim and left-arm spinner Sabikun Nahar. Tanjim is known for her free-flowing batting style and high strike rate, while Nahar is expected to provide support to Nahida Akter in the spin department.

Bangladesh have left out Habiba Islam, Fahima Khatun, Sobhana Mostary, and Fariha Trisna from the team that played against India in May.

"I think we have a great prospect in the Asia Cup this year," said Sajjad. "We open the tournament against Sri Lanka. If we win that game, we have a great chance of playing in the semi-final."

Bangladesh will face Sri Lanka on July 20, followed by matches against Thailand and Malaysia on July 22 and 24, respectively.

Tags: #BangladeshCricket, #WomensAsiaCup, #RumanaAhmed, #JahanaraAlam, #IshmaTanjim