Soumya Sarkar looked in sublime touch in practice at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on Wednesday afternoon, timing the ball sweetly in the nets alongside Afif Hossain and Saif Hassan. But the left-hander’s sharp batting session may not be enough to force his way into Bangladesh’s plans for the upcoming New Zealand ODI series.
Sarkar, 33 years old, shared a social media post on March 14 on the eve of the third ODI against Pakistan, a reminder that he is still in the conversation even as his chances of selection appear slimmer. He made his ODI debut in 2014 and has played 79 ODIs for Bangladesh, yet his international career has moved in fits and starts.
That uneven rhythm is part of the reason his case remains complicated. Bangladesh have played 165 ODIs since his debut, and Sarkar has featured in 79 of them. Since the 2019 World Cup, he has appeared in 27 of Bangladesh’s 88 ODIs, a stretch interrupted by an ACL injury against Sri Lanka in Chattogram and by long spells out of the side.
Head coach Phil Simmons said on Wednesday that Sarkar missed a lot of cricket between West Indies, during the BPL and leading up to BCL, and that Bangladesh had to make a choice. Simmons said Tanzid Tamim and Saif Hassan did well, and that Sarkar has to keep pushing to get back into the side. Skipper Mehidy Hasan Miraz made a similar point, saying form matters for a batter and noting that Tamim and Saif’s opening partnership produced a 100-plus stand in the last series.
Sarkar’s recent record shows why he remains a difficult call. He produced a match-winning knock in a series-deciding game against West Indies last year, the kind of innings that has repeatedly kept him in Bangladesh’s wider thinking. A former team management member also said he tends to be a lot more lively in conditions like New Zealand or Australia, which adds another layer to the debate around his omission.
For now, the selection picture points elsewhere. Bangladesh’s current opening options have already delivered, and that leaves Sarkar waiting again despite the evidence that he can still change a game. He may yet have one last shot at the 2027 World Cup, but the next step is simpler and harder at the same time: getting back into the XI before the door closes again.
