Shahadat Hossain, Bangladesh cricketer, asks for end to ban

Shahadat Hossain (centre) handed himself in to police in October

A Bangladeshi Test cricketer has asked to be allowed to return to the sport after being charged with torturing his 11-year-old housemaid.

Shahadat Hossain was suspended by the Bangladeshi Cricket Board (BCB) after he and his wife were arrested on suspicion of torturing the girl.

Mr Hossain, 29, has previously denied abusing Mahfuza Akhter Happy. He is currently out of prison on bail.

He apologised for his "mistake" in a news conference.

He said: "I beg forgiveness to the country. To err is human, and I have made a mistake.

"For the sake of cricket and my livelihood, I want to return to cricket. I appeal to the nation, the Bangladeshi Cricket Board (BCB), to allow me to return to cricket and correct my mistake."

'Beaten and tortured'

Miss Happy was found in a street in September 2015 with multiple injuries, including a broken leg and a black eye.

She told police that she had been working for the couple for a year and that they had beaten and tortured her.

Mr Hossain had initially reported her as missing. He later handed himself in to police.

He and his wife, Jasmine Jahan Nritto Shahadat, were jailed before being let out on bail two months later.

If convicted, they could face jail terms of between seven and 14 years, plus a fine.

The charges have been brought under legislation designed to protect women and children from domestic abuse.

Local media report that Mr Hossein has already submitted a formal appeal to the BCB, which did not overturn the ban and said there were "legal complications".

He has played Test and ODI cricket and became the first Bangladeshi cricketer to be added to the Lord's honours board.