Afghanistan take on Bangladesh in the third match of the ongoing ODI tri-series, at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Wednesday, October 21. The Bangla Tigers were beaten by Zimbabwe in their opening match of the tri-series, while Afghanistan are playing their maiden fixture against Zimbabwe at the time of writing. Bangladesh’s defeat was a shock to everyone who follows them closely. They will now be itching to get a positive result against Afghanistan.
The latter’s inexperience with the ball makes them easy targets, but Bangladesh will not get too ahead of themselves. For the Bangla Tigers, their batters need to deliver consistently if they are to make any inroads. Their bowlers, too, need to get in the habit of picking up wickets at regular intervals. For Afghanistan, captain Rahmat Shah will know the importance of putting up a lot of runs on the board since their bowling department – except the experienced Rashid Khan – appears undercooked. Therefore, the roles of Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Shah himself become vital.
Predicted Teams
AFG: Ibrahim Zadran,
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk),
Sediqullah Atal,
Rahmat Shah (c),
Hashmatullah Shahidi,
Azmatullah Omarzai,
Mohammad Nabi,
Rashid Khan,
AM Ghazanfar,
Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi,
Fazalhaq Farooqi.
BAN: Tanzid Hasan Tamim,
Soumya Sarkar,
Najmul Hossain Shanto,
Towhid Hridoy (c),
Saif Hassan,
Mosaddek Hossain,
Nurul Hasan (wk),
Rishad Hossain,
Shoriful Islam,
Taskin Ahmed,
Mustafizur Rahman.
Key Players
Mohammad Nabi (AFG): Mohammad Nabi’s importance to this Afghan squad cannot be exaggerated. The veteran has shown, with his years of experience, that he still has it in him to influence matches. The all-rounder is a critical player for Afghanistan both with the bat and ball. When he walks out to bat, Nabi usually finds himself in situations where he has to score quick runs. While he does this without creating much of a fuss, Nabi also has the capacity to play grounded shots and take his team out of danger if they have lost too many wickets prematurely. With the ball in hand, Nabi can be entrusted to do the job both inside the first powerplay and the middle overs. Many times, Afghanistan have used his assistance with the new ball when the fielding restrictions are on. While he typically likes doing so when bowling to left-handers, Nabi does not waver against right-handers even though the ball turns back into them.
Tanzid Hasan Tamim (BAN): Opening batter Tanzid Hasan Tamim was the sole bright spot for Bangladesh with the bat in their defeat to Zimbabwe. He scored 46 off just 38 balls, using nine boundaries and one six in the process. The southpaw is one of the most thrilling cricketers to come out of Bangladesh of late, and he reminds spectators of his namesake, the legendary Tamim Iqbal. Tanzid is known to use his feet particularly well to get to the pitch of the ball, and this makes him destructive against both spin and pace. While he likes to play an assertive brand of cricket by going for boundaries in the first powerplay, he can also rotate the strike and build partnerships when his team needs him to. This versatility makes Tanzid a critical cog in the Bangladesh batting wheel.
Match Prediction
Bangladesh have the upper hand, and we expect them to win. They have more players of quality in their ranks, and the defeat to Zimbabwe in the first game will only spur them on to make a comeback. Against the Afghans, Bangladesh will use their spinners extensively. These weapons will come in handy on the pitch here in Abu Dhabi, which is known to be dry. Bangladesh’s batters are also more skilled than the Afghans.
