Injured Mohammad Saleem ruled out of ODI series against Bangladesh
Bilal Sami replaces Saleem in Afghanistan's squad for the three-match series in Abu Dhabi
ESPNcricinfo staff
06-Oct-2025 • 4 hrs ago
Mohammad Saleem last played for Afghanistan in February 2024 • AFP/Getty Images
Afghanistan's right-arm fast bowler Mohammad Saleem has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match ODI series against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi due to a groin (adductor) overload.
As a result, Saleem will report to the ACB's High Performance Center for rehabilitation, a release by the Afghanistan Cricket Board said.
In Saleem's place, right-arm medium-pace bowler Bilal Sami will be joining Afghanistan's squad for the ODIs against Bangladesh.
Twenty-three-year-old Saleem has played two ODIs so far, with both of those matches coming against Bangladesh in July 2023. He last played for Afghanistan in his solitary Test, which was against Sri Lanka in Colombo in February 2024.
Saleem's replacement Sami, meanwhile, has played for Afghanistan only once, which was on ODI debut against Zimbabwe in December 2024. Sami, 21, has played 25 List A games, where he has 44 wickets at an average of 25.72. He represented Afghanistan Under-19 at the World Cup in 2022, where he got four wickets in five matches.
Sami was recently in action at the Ghazi Amanullah Khan Regional One Day Tournament, Afghanistan's domestic List A competition, which ended in September. There, he was his team Speen Ghar Region's second-highest wicket-taker with ten wickets at an average of 22.90, and an economy rate of 4.97.
Afghanistan's first ODI against Bangladesh will take place on Wednesday, October 8.