Bangladesh’s captain, Towhid Hridoy, has decided to bat first in the critical final round-robin match against Afghanistan as part of the ongoing ODI tri-series, which also includes Zimbabwe. For Bangladesh to secure a spot in the final, they need a victory over Afghanistan by at least 41 runs, with all teams still vying for a place in the final clash.
Introducing some changes to their squad, Bangladesh has given fingerspinner Aliss Al Islam his ODI debut. Returning to the team after recovering from a viral fever is Mehidy Hasan Miraz, while Parvez Hossain Emon steps in as the wicketkeeper. As a consequence, Rishad Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, and Nurul Hasan have been left out.
Afghanistan also made alterations, opting to rest the pace duo of Fazalhaq Farooqi and Ziaur Rahman. They have brought in Yamin Ahmadzai and Bilal Sami to bolster their bowling attack.
Historically, Bangladesh’s record in Sharjah is not particularly strong, with just one win in eight matches dating back to 1990. Notably, that solitary victory against Afghanistan was in 2024, during a series that concluded 1-2 in Afghanistan’s favour.
Here are the match line-ups:
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah (capt), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, AM Ghazanfar, Yamin Ahmadzai, and Bilal Sami.
Bangladesh: Tanzid Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Saif Hassan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy (capt), Parvez Hossain Emon (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Aliss Al Islam, and Mustafizur Rahman.
Both teams are aiming to streamline their performance for a spot in the final, making today’s match a compelling fixture for cricket enthusiasts.
