Bangladesh will miss veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim for the first Test against the West Indies as he failed to recover from an injury to his index finger suffered during training. But there is hope he will make it for the second Test in Sylhet starting on November 5.

Mushfiqur Rahim injured his finger while batting in the nets at Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Academy on Tuesday. He was hit by a ball from one of the net bowlers and had to leave the nets due to discomfort. Although there was little indication of a severe injury, the 38-year-old was still in pain the following morning.

He had difficulty putting his wicketkeeping gloves on. He had an X-ray which showed there was no tear, but the medical team have decided not to take the chance of playing in the opening Test.

Mushfiqur Rahim Expected to Return for Second Test

Bangladesh physio Bayjedul Islam Khan confirmed that Mushfiqur suffered a bruise. The medical staff believe he should make a full recovery in the next few days and play in the second Test.

“Due to an injury to Mushfiqur Rahim's index finger during training yesterday, he was being observed. However, there was not enough improvement until this morning.

It was a bruise, and we are hoping that he will be back in three days and will be fit for the next test,” Khan said in a statement released by the BCB, reported by ESPNcricinfo.

With Mushfiqur Rahim out, Towhid Hridoy has been named in the playing XI for the first Test. However, the player has little experience in the longest format, having played his first Test against Zimbabwe in Harare earlier this year.

The news comes at an important time for Bangladesh as Mushfiqur has been playing an important role in their Test batting line-up.

Last year, he became the first Bangladeshi cricketer to play 100 Tests and has averaged over 40 in his six Tests since.

He was last in action in the international arena in the fixtures against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. In the first innings, he struggled and scored a duck but showed his fighting spirit by posting 81 in the second innings.

While Mushfiqur has enjoyed a largely injury-free career he has missed some Tests. He sat out a home Test against Sri Lanka due to personal reasons and last missed a Test due to injury on Bangladesh's tour of the West Indies in November 2024.

Najmul Hossain Shanto won the toss and decided to bat first at the start of the series in Dhaka.

The two-test series is also important for Bangladesh as they have six Tests left in their 2025-27 ICC World Test Championship campaign. They need to win four times and draw once to keep their hopes of reaching the final alive for the first time.