Tigers face Afghans in first T20 today

June 03, 2018 00:00:00

DEHRADUN: Afghan cricket captain Mohammad Asghar Stanikzai (L) and Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan pose for a photograph during a press conference in the northern Indian state of Uttarkhand Saturday. The T-20 series between Afghanistan and Bangladesh will start today (Sunday) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium here — AFP

Bangladesh will face ICC's new full member Afghanistan in the first T20 of the three-match series at a neutral venue Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in India's Dehradun today (Sunday), reports UNB.

The match will begin at 8:30 pm (Bangladesh time). Satellite channels Gazi TV and Channel-i will telecast the match live.

Bangladesh will miss their pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman who was ruled out due to injury that he suffered during his IPL campaign for Mumbai Indians.

He was replaced by pace bowler Abul Hasan Raju but the Tigers captain all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan considered that without Mustafiz the series will be 'difficult' for his side.

"Naturally, there will be some problems. He (Mustafizur Rahman) is our best T20 bowler and so it will be 'difficult'. We will miss our best pacer, but I think it's an opportunity for someone else...to grab that chance and make it count," said Shakib before leaving the country for India on Thursday.

Shakib is hopeful of doing good in the series as he said, "Obviously all play to win. So do us. We will try to ply match by match. The first match is very important. If, we can make a good start, the momentum will favour us and the next two matches will be easy."

The tenth ranked Bangladesh played against current eighth ranked Afghanistan in the shortest format on one occasion for a nine-wicket victory during the group stage battles of the ICC World Twenty20 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in 2014.

Bangladesh squad: Shakib Al Hasan (captain), Mahmudullah Riyad (vice-captain), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Kumar Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Ariful Haque, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Nazmul Islam Apu, Abu Hider Rony, Rubel Hossain, Abu Jayed Chowdhury Rahi, Abul Hsan Raju.

Afghanistan squad: Asghar Stanikzai (captain), Mohammad Shahzad, Najeebullah Tarakai, Usman Ghani, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Darwish Rasooli, Mohammad Nabi , Gulbadin Naib, Karim Jannat, Rashid Khan, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Shapoor Zadran and Aftab Alam.