The Bangladesh cricket campaign at the Asian Games 2026 has suffered a major blow ahead of their knockout fixture, with star batter and Test captain Najmul Hossain Shanto officially ruled out of the tournament. Shanto has been forced to return home to Bangladesh before the team's crucial quarter-final clash against Malaysia.

The setback comes as a massive operational loss for the squad, especially given Shanto's recent leadership success in the red-ball format, which includes a historic Test series draw in Australia. The Bangladesh Cricket Board intervened to send their skipper back early to prevent any health risks ahead of the upcoming one-off Test series against Afghanistan, which is scheduled to kick off on October 9.

Fever During Flight And Body Weakness

According to an official statement released by the Bangladesh Olympic Association, local doctors and medical staff assessed the player before advising his immediate withdrawal.

Providing details on the timeline of the illness, BCB physiotherapist Bayjedul Islam Khan revealed that the sickness struck mid-air. “Najmul Hossain Shanto has been suffering from a fever ever since returning from his flight.

In fact, the fever started during the flight itself. Right now, the fever is still fluctuating - it is a low-grade fever,” Bayjedul stated.

The physio noted that the persistent bug has taken a toll on the skipper's physical conditioning. “Given his condition so far, his body has become quite weak. Since today marks the fourth day, we conducted blood tests for him, and the test results have come in. There are some infectious agents present in his system.”

Negative Test Results And The Decision To Send Him Home

Medical teams subjected the star batter to extensive diagnostic evaluations to rule out major viral strains.

Officials confirmed that testing cleared him of both COVID-19 and influenza.

Despite negative respiratory screenings, the lingering four-day infection and severe fatigue sealed his fate. Because recovery timelines would rule him out even if the team advanced deep into the tournament, management decided against keeping an unfit player in Japan.

“However, tests for viral infections came back negative and he tested negative for both influenza and COVID-19. So ultimately, since he is still suffering from fever after four days and considering the extent of weakness in his body, recovering in time before the final will be impossible.

So we think that he will not be available till the final. That is why he is being sent back home,” Bayjedul added.

So we think that he will not be available till the final. That is why he is being sent back home,” Bayjedul added.