Bangladesh defend a proud home record

The three-match ODI series against England will be Bangladesh’s quest for a seventh successive bilateral series win at home where they have been unbeaten for two years. Their latest success came against Afghanistan at the start of this week, which was Bangladesh’s first ODI series of 2016.

Bangladesh have lost only three matches out of 20 encounters at home since November 2014. Tamim Iqbal has been their highest scorer during this period while Mushfiqur Rahim and Soumya Sarkar aren’t too far behind. Shakib Al Hasan and Mashrafe Mortaza have been Bangladesh’s best bowlers but they will be missing Mustafizur Rahman who is recovering from shoulder surgery.

England have so far been as respectful as a visiting team should be against such opponents but it would be hard to ignore their sparkle since the 2015 World Cup. They have displayed this summer how different an ODI unit they have developed themselves into. They might lack Eoin Morgan and Alex Hales, but the likes of James Vince and Ben Duckett give hope that the back-up will come good. There is also a lot of faith placed on Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler, who now have senior roles in the side for at least these three matches.

Moeen Ali can provide in-depth knowledge on Bangladeshi cricketers and conditions having played here in two domestic tournaments. His friendship with Tamim could also come in handy for Moeen’s bowling as well as for injecting some bonhomie between the two sides.

Bangladesh and England have only played two ODIs, in the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, after their last ODI series in 2010, but this is the meeting of two teams on the rise over the last 18 months. Cricket hasn’t seen many new rivalries but this ODI series has all the makings of sparking one.
Form guide

Bangladesh: WLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
England: LWWWW
Players to watch

Tamim Iqbal has batted well against England in the past, and is also in great touch. His last innings was a blazing century against Afghanistan. There will be a lot riding on the good start that he provides from the top order.

If Jos Buttler keeps wickets on Friday, he will be England’s first wicketkeeper-captain in ODIs for 13 years. His main challenge, in that case, would be to maintain his batting rhythm to combine with his other two important duties.

Team news

Imrul Kayes has been preferred to Soumya as Tamim’s partner in the opening slot. But there is unlikely to be any place for Al-Amin Hossain and Nasir Hossain in an otherwise settled Bangladesh XI that beat Afghanistan in the third ODI on October 1.

Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mosaddek Hossain, 8 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 9 Mosharraf Hossain, 10 Shafiul Islam, 11 Taskin Ahmed

England are set to make six changes from their last ODI, with Hales and Morgan missing, Joe Root rested from the tour, Mark Wood injured and Chris Jordan omitted. Vince is likely to take Hales’ place while Duckett is certain to make his ODI debut. Adil Rashid and Moeen are also set to return, leaving Liam Dawson, Sam Billings, Jake Ball and Steven Finn on the bench.

England (probable): 1 Jason Roy, 2 James Vince, 3 Ben Duckett, 4 Jonny Bairstow, 5 Ben Stokes, 6 Jos Buttler (capt / wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 David Willey, 10 Liam Plunkett, 11 Adil Rashid

Pitch and conditions

Rain is forecast for Friday afternoon so both teams could pick their XIs at the last minute, after taking a look at the pitch as historically, the Mirpur square has had a tendency of changing slightly with moisture around.

Stats and trivia

Ben Duckett is England’s fourth choice as a wicketkeeper after captain Buttler, Bairstow and Billings. If he does play on Friday, he will become England’s second ODI debutant in 2016.
Bangladesh have used six different batsmen at No. 3 in their last six ODIs. Sabbir Rahman’s 65 in their last game could break the sequence as he is set to bat in the same position again.
Quotes

“Without these two players [Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan], England is not going to be a weaker side. They have some very exciting players who can change the game. I feel England is still a very good side. We are really excited to play against them.”
Mashrafe Mortaza, Bangladesh captain, anticipates a rare meeting between the sides.