In a bid to establish themselves as an elite T20 playing nation, Bangladesh will lock horns with Afghanistan in the tri-series T20 final at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur today (Tuesday). The match is scheduled to start at 6:30 pm. Team Bangladesh practiced in Mirpur yesterday to prepare for the final. Having come off the back of two consecutive victories in group phase, the Tigers will be looking to use the much-needed gain in confidence to clinch the trophy against a strong Afghan side.
Bangladesh are currently ranked at tenth position in ICC T20 rankings in contrast to Afghanistan’s seventh. Therefore, a series win against a much higher ranked team than them will certainly boost the Tigers ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia. In road to the final, Bangladesh have beaten Zimbabwe twice. They won one and lost one against the Afghans. Now they again face a stern test against the Afghans, whom they have beaten just twice in last six previous meetings in T20I’s.
In the last dead rubber game against Afghanistan in Chattogram, Tigers came out top with skipper Shakib Al Hasan’s masterclass. Shakib finished on an unbeaten 45-ball 70 with 8 fours and a maximum, as he rode out the pressure created by Afghanistan’s spinners, even as wickets kept falling at the other end. He again needs to lead his team from the front if Tigers are to beat the Afghans today. Bangladesh certainly need to sort out their batting ahead of today’s final. Lackluster and inconsistency in batting are something, which Bangladesh batsmen are yet to rectify.
We saw glimpses of individual brilliance among senior players with Mahmudullah’s 62 and Shakib’s 70 during the group phase. However, the team need to show cohesion in batting and every other departments to win crunch finals like these. Wicketkeeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim was a shadow of himself during the tourney, he certainly needs to get his act together today.
Bowling department so far have done a good job. The 19-year-old leg spinner Aminul Islam Biplob had a good debut when he scalped two wickets against Zimbabwe. The bowler however also suffered injury in the same match and according to coach Russell Domingo, is unlikely to play the final. Pacer Shafiul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman and Mohammad Saifuddin will likely play today, with Shakib and Taijul Islam leading the spin department. The coach yesterday also gave a hint of playing with four pacers, given the grassy nature of the pitch.