PORT-OF-SPAIN, March 16: Bangladesh's World Cup squad was in mourning on Friday after the death of international colleague Manjurul Islam Rana and fellow cricketer Sajjadul Hasan in a road accident.

Manjurul and Sajjadul died when the motorcycle on which they were travelling collided with a bus in Khulna.“I am deeply shocked. He was our team-mate and we played together for a long time,” said Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar of Manjurul who played six Tests and 25 One-day Internationals but missed out on the World Cup squad.

“All the boys are really shocked and upset. Some of them also cried because he was very close to us. I think he was supposed to tour Sri Lanka with the Bangladeshi 'A' team. It is very sad news.”

Bangladeshi batsman Javed Omar said: “It's very sad news for Bangladesh cricket and for me because he was very close to me. May God give strength to his family. It's very unfortunate.”

Opening batsman Shahriar Nafees added: “It's very shocking. We just could not believe it. He was a very nice guy and very close to our hearts. It's very sad.”—AFP