Bangladesh Eye on Another T20I Series Win

Bangladesh would like to call off the T20I series on Wednesday. Even though New Zealand showed they could equal it. Mahmudullah’s men have a proud record at home. Incidentally came back in 2010 when a 4-0 ODI series win over the Black Caps kickstarted their dominance. Nevertheless, New Zealand’s 52-run victory on Sunday. Which was only second in bilateral matches in Bangladesh in the last 11 years, would be worrying.

Tom Latham’s naive but spirited side found a way to keep the series going. And his spinners appeared to be moving from strength to strength. Left-hander Ejaz Patel is leading. And having picked up four wickets in the last game – Mahedi Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, and Afif Hossain, an impressive collection indeed – his confidence will skyrocket.

Bangladesh Struggled When Zeeland’s Bowling Attack got Variety:

Fast bowlers Jacob Duffy and Scott Kuggeleijn have also bowled economically. Due to which New Zealand’s bowling attack has got variety. Against which Bangladesh has to struggle.

Given the slow, low, and fast-paced nature of the Mirpur pitch, New Zealand has probably realized that hitting gaps is more important than looking for boundaries. On Sunday, Finn Allen gave them a great start but then in the 11th over they were reduced to 62 for 5 in the 11th over. Henry Nicholls and Tom Blundell had to get a bit stronger before scoring 33 runs in the last three overs.

Bangladesh Still Have a Comfortable 2-1 Lead in this Series:

Bangladesh still have a comfortable 2-1 lead in this series. And there are many players capable of delivering match-winning performances. Be it their spin trio (Shakib, Mahedi, Nasum Ahmed) or their death bowling specialists (Mustafizur Rahman and Mohammad Saifuddin). They also have noisy Islam waiting in the wings.

The only concern is the batting as he has unnecessarily experimented with the No. 3 position. With Shakib to follow along with Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmadullah and with Mahedi leaving the finishing duties, Afif and Nurul Hasan must strike the right balance to the XI.

Form guide

(last five completed matches)
Bangladesh
New Zealand WLLWW

In the headlines

The enigmatic Liton Das has already made two good starts in the series, which is nothing new as everyone is expecting it. Litton himself has said that he needs to be more responsible. Will he finally be able to live up to his potential?

Ejaz Patel started the series in men’s T20Is by bowling the second most economical spell by a New Zealand player before his four-wicket haul took the team to their first win on the tour. Patel has made good use of the conditions as well as the Bangladeshi spinners and looks dangerous in almost every spell. Two more big performances and Patel could be the first in line if New Zealand has to look at adding an extra spinner to their T20 World Cup squad.

Team News

Bangladesh has their batting and bowling back-up on the bench, but a loss may not change that.

Bangladesh (Probable): 1 Mohammad Naeem, 2 Liton Das, 3 Shakib Al Hasan, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Mahmudullah (captain), 6 Nurul Hasan (wk), 7 Afif Hossain, 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Mohammad Saifuddin, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Nasum Ahmed

New Zealand probably found their best combination for the third T20I by removing one of their fast bowlers. It helped lengthen their batting line-up, which certainly helps in tough situations. Scott Kuggeleijn went without bowling the last over of the match, although New Zealand did not confirm if he had any illness or injury concerns.

New Zealand (probable): 1 Rachin Ravindra, 2 Finn Allen, 3 Will Young, 4 Tom Latham (c & wk), 5 Colin de Grandhomme, 6 Henry Nicholls, 7 Tom Blundell, 8 Cole McConchie, 9 Ejaz Patel, 10 Scott Kuggeleijn, 11 Jacob Duffy

Pitch and Conditions

The only hope for the batsmen is if Dhaka curator Gamini Silva decides to re-use the pitch from the second game of the series. Otherwise, spin is expected to dominate once again. Rain is forecast at the time of the match.

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