Bangladesh call up Taskin for first New Zealand Test

Dhaka, Jan 6: Young paceman Taskin Ahmed has broken into the squad for the first Test against New Zealand while Mushfiqur Rahim made a return from injury for Bangladesh. Another pacer Rubel Hossain was also picked for the first Test, reports bdnews24.com.

Taskin is a regular in the limited-overs lineup. But taking injury risks into account, the selectors had kept him away from five-day cricket until now. Hints at the 21-year-old's call-up in Tests against New Zealand had come earlier.

Taskin has been opted out of the ongoing T20 series to keep him fresh for the Test series. New Zealand, however, took an ussailable 2-0 lead in the 20-over version with a match to spare on Friday.

The tall youngster last played his first-class match in February 2013. His wicket tally stands at 24 from 10 matches at an average of 29, with best figures of 4/66 in an innings, and 5/107 in a match.

The first Test is set to start on January 12 in Wellington. IANS