Rubel misses out on national contract

Bangladesh has dropped paceman Rubel Hossain from its list of contracted players after accusing him of failing to follow instructions to help him recover from injury.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has asked the 26-year-old to explain why he failed to follow the guidelines drawn up by the team physio to hasten his recovery from a calf injury.

"We've told Rubel we will reconsider reinstating him in the national contract only after he gives a satisfactory answer to our notice," board spokesman Jalal Yunus told AFP on Tuesday.

Rubel, a key member of Bangladesh's attack at last year's World Cup, has been sidelined since November after he aggravated a calf injury.

After sustaining the injury during the Bangladesh A team's tour of India in September, he played six matches in the Bangladesh Premier League Twenty20 tournament.

The cricket board late Monday announced 14 players would be given contracts for this year, which makes them part of the national squad and entitles them to a regular salary.

The contract list includes three newcomers, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman and Mustafizur Rahman, who were rewarded for good performances in 2015.

The board also announced a 25 per cent pay rise for the contracted players.