New-look Tigers take on old foes

A new-look Bangladesh national cricket team will set out on their Twenty20 international mission against Zimbabwe with the first Twenty20 International in the three-match series today at the Harare Sports Club ground in Zimbabwe.

The Tigers will be playing under newly-appointed interim captain Nurul Hasan Sohan, who replaced Mahmudullah Riyad for the T20I series.

Bangladesh are on a miserable run in T20Is as they have won only one match in their last 13, but a new captain in Nurul will impart positivity in the camp and motivate the Tigers to play a fresher, more fearless brand of cricket in the shortest format of the game, a format that Bangladesh is still coming to terms with.

“We are lagging in Tests and T20Is compared to One-day Internationals. It is important for us we improve,” Nurul said last week in Dhaka.

“For me fearless cricket is important. We will see if we can do this. If we remain fearless, the chances of things turning positive will be high. When you have the fear of failure, it will affect you negatively,” the skipper added.

While the ODI squad includes the usual performers, the T20I squad, for the first time, will be embarking on a series with the exclusion of all four of the most experienced players- Mahmudullah Riyad, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, and Tamim Iqbal, who retired from T20Is last month.

While Shakib has opted out of the whole Zimbabwe tour, Mushfiq, Tamim, and Mahmudullah will return for the ODI series.

Mustafizur Rahman’s 66 matches make him the most experienced T20I player among the two teams.

Despite their grim look in T20Is in recent times, the good news for Bangladesh is that they will face their favourite oppositions in terms of results.

In the 16 T20Is Bangladesh have played against Zimbabwe, the Tigers have come out on top on 11 occasions.

But beating Zimbabwe in their backyard has often proved to be a difficult task for touring teams. Despite winning the T20I series in 2021, Bangladesh lost the second T20I in their last tour.

A lot of focus will be on how Bangladesh will line up in their new-look side, with the onus being on top-order batting as Bangladesh have used ten different opening pairs in their last 29 T20Is.

The selectors have called-up exuberant left-handed opener Parvez Hossain Emon, while Munim Shahriar and Anamul Haque are also there.

In the middle order, the responsibility rests upon Afif Hossain, and of course, Nurul.

Mehidy Hasan and Mosaddek Hossain can be all-round options, with the latter having performances with the ball in West Indies.

While the batting spectrum of the team has been unsettling, the bowling sure gives a lot of assurance, with fast-bowlers Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, and Taskin Ahmed working as a pack. The inclusion of pacer Hasan Mahmud, who returned from injury, might also be an interesting choice.

The spinning department will have the likes of Nasum Ahmed and Mahedi Hasan, both of whom impressed in West indies.

Zimbabwe were pegged back by late injury exclusions as their speedster Blessing Muzarabani was sidelined with a muscle problem, and his fellow pacer Tendai Chatara fractured his collarbone.

Craig Ervine’s side won all of their last five matches, topping the T20 World Cup qualification tournament in Bulawayo less than two weeks ago, and aim to use the upcoming visits of Bangladesh and India, who tour in August, as preparation for the World Cup later this year in Australia.

Zimbabwe will bank on their main all-rounder Sikandar Raza to take his team through with his all-around exploits. Raza, Zimbabwe’s highest wicket-taker in T20Is this year, will have fellow spinners Wessely Madhevere, Ryan Burl, and Sean Williams by his side to restrict Bangladesh.