Tamim Iqbal is the only Bangladeshi player in the World XI squad

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal has expressed his excitement towards representing the World XI in their three-match Twenty20 series against Pakistan in Lahore next month.

Iqbal is the only Bangladesh player in the squad, which features cricketers from seven different Test playing nations.

The series is being used as a stepping stone to revive international cricket in Pakistan.

Since Sri Lanka’s team bus was attacked by militants in Lahore in March 2009, Zimbabwe have been the only Full Member nation to visit Pakistan, which occurred in March 2015.

All the other Full Member countries have faced Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates, which is where Pakistan have been playing all their ‘home’ series.

“I feel that representing the World XI is a big achievement for me and I’m very proud of it,” Iqbal was quoted as saying by The News International. “I think that 10 Test playing nations are like a family. Someone has to help international cricket get back to Pakistan.

“They [ICC] have taken a fantastic initiative. If they are successful in hosting, I hope more international teams will visit Pakistan. It should have started at some stage. We have taken the first step. I think this is really a fantastic thing but it should have been organised a long time ago.”

Iqbal has been in excellent form as of late as during the Champions Trophy in England in June, he was the tournament’s third-highest scorer with 293 runs, which included a century and two fifties, in four matches at an average of 73.25.

The 28-year-old will no doubt be trying to replicate that form during Bangladesh’s two-Test series against Australia, which begins on Sunday in Mirpur.

It has been confirmed that South Africa’s Faf du Plessis will captain the World XI, while former England head coach Andy Flower will coach the team.

World XI Squad: Faf du Plessis (capt), Hashim Amla, Samuel Badree, George Bailey, Paul Collingwood, Ben Cutting, Grant Elliott, Tamim Iqbal, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Tim Paine, Thisara Perera, Imran Tahir, Darren Sammy