Bangladesh overcame a slew of obstacles and the crushing blow of ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan being ruled out on the morning of the match to achieve one of their best results -- a 37-run win over two-time champions Pakistan in their Asia Cup match at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

An already unlucky Asia Cup went from bad to worse for Bangladesh as before the most important match, yesterday's virtual semifinal against Pakistan, trump card Shakib Al Hasan was ruled out of the tournament.

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been ruled out of the Asia Cup and is on his way back to Dhaka with a flare-up of his long-standing left little finger injury, team manager Khaled Mahmud informs

Ace Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has not been able to grip the bat over the last two days, resulting in him missing out on the crucial Bangladesh-Pakistan encounter in Abu Dhabi, team manager Khaled Mahmud informs

Bangladesh suffer a major blow in their virtual Asia Cup semifinal against Pakistan as ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is ruled out of the match with a flare-up of his longstanding left little finger injury

The heat is a dominant topic here in the UAE, and while it is true that the mercury is the same for all four remaining teams in the ongoing Asia Cup, Bangladesh would be justified in saying that they are the most disadvantaged.

The Asia Cup so far has been an exercise in making lemonade out of lemons for Bangladesh. From the first match, during which opener Tamim Iqbal was felled by a fractured left hand because of which he eventually had to leave the tournament, Bangladesh have had to deal with the heat in the UAE, which the country's cricketers have not experienced since the 1995 Asia Cup, and tough scheduling.

When Bangladesh meet Pakistan in the last Asia Cup Super Four game, it will be a virtual semifinal between two teams who have had similar paths to this point. Both have won two matches out of four so far.

Bangladesh ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan's availability is in doubt ahead of today's virtual semifinal against Pakistan in the ongoing Asia Cup.

Will Bangladesh national cricket team seal their entry to yet another dream final of Asia Cup? Sports reporters Ariful Islam Roney and Masud Parvez talk to The Daily Star’s Ekush Tapader on Bangladesh team’s possibility to play the Asia Cup 2018 final and different other aspects. Watch the Star Live video to know more.

Changes may be in the offing for Bangladesh when they take on Pakistan on Wednesday in what will be a virtual Asia Cup semifinal at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. They won their last match against Afghanistan in thrilling fashion Sunday when Mustafizur Rahman conceded just four runs when Afghanistan needed eight to win in the last over.

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza reached a new milestone during the match against Afghanistan on September 23, becoming the first bowler from Bangladesh to reach 250 ODI wickets. The cricketer thanked the Tigers’ supporters via a Facebook post, saying that it was the love of the supporters that kept him going during harsh times.

Imrul Kayes had just 48 hours after completing a four-day game in Khulna for the High Performance squad to pack his bags and board a flight to join the Tigers in the United Arab Emirates for a do or die encounter against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup, where he was expected to handle one of the best spin bowlers in the world in Rashid Khan.

Mustafizur Rahman is not the most talkative with microphones placed in front of him and cameras trained on him. However, when he performs like he did on Sunday, stopping Afghanistan dead in their tracks by conceding just four when they needed eight to win off the last over of their Asia Cup match, he has to reluctantly make an appearance.

What could be the beginning of a turnaround for Bangladesh in the ongoing Asia Cup may seem on the surface to have been caused by the inspired inclusion of Imrul Kayes in the team for Sunday's match against Afghanistan a mere 17 hours after he was flown into the United Arab Emirates as emergency reinforcement.

Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan went for a scan on his left little finger in Dubai yesterday. Team manager Khaled Mahmud said that it was not a cause for alarm yet, ahead of tomorrow's virtual semifinal against Pakistan, and they will know more when they get the results today.

On Monday, there was a media day at the ICC headquarters, not far from where India will play Afghanistan in the Asia Cup today, where bigwigs like ICC CEO Dave Richardson, general manager of the Anti-Corruption Unit Alex Marshall and general manager of cricket Geoff Allardice spoke to the media about the state of cricket in 2018.

Before yesterday, Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan had played four ODIs and three T20s against Bangladesh. Handling the world-class leg-spinner has always been a bothersome prospect for the Tigers. In each of the four previous ODIs that Rashid played against Bangladesh, he had managed more than one wicket and did not give away over 40 runs in any of those games.

Fizz’s fantastic final over yesterday, saw Bangladesh successfully defend eight runs in the last over in a tight match where Afghans looked like they were in the driving seat with wickets in hand.

Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah Riyad singles out Mustafizur Rahman for special praise after the left-arm pacer kept his nerve and overcame cramps to bowl a last over for the ages, conceding just four runs when Afghanistan needed eight to win.