Bangladesh made a few notable changes in their squad for the upcoming limited-overs series against New Zealand with Shakib missing the series and Taijul Islam dropped. Mosaddek Hossain, who had a good Bangabandhu T20 Cup with the ball, makes a return to the squad.

Shakib, who suffered a thigh injury during the Test series against West Indies, is supposedly on paternity leave. The time off would also give the star all-rounder a bit of time to recover from the injury.

Taijul is often seen as a Test specialist and although he was part of the limited-overs squad for the recent series against West Indies, he did not play a game. Mosaddek last played for Bangladesh in 2019, but after a good T20 Cup with the ball and with Shakib absent, Bangladesh had room for the all-rounder.

Also returning to the squad is Mohammad Naim, the opening batsman, and fast bowler Al-Amin Hossain. Uncapped spinner Nasum Ahmed, who has earlier been part of the setup, has good numbers in limited-overs cricket, and could make his debut in New Zealand.

The ODI series, consisting of three matches, is part of the Cricket World Cup Super League where Bangladesh have picked up all 30 points so far with a 3-0 whitewash of the West Indies. The first ODI of the series will be played on March 20.

NZ vs BAN: Bangladesh squad for New Zealand tour

Tamim Iqbal, Mosaddek Hossain, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mithun, Liton Das, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Soumya Sarkar, Naim Sheikh, Taskin Ahmed, Al Amin Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rubel Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed