Afghanistan will try to maintain their strong showing in the current Asia Cup 2022 when they face Bangladesh in their second encounter on Tuesday. They dominated Sri Lanka in the opening encounter, and Bangladesh must be mindful of them as they attempt to start their Asia Cup campaign with a win.
Bangladesh’s fortunes in T20Is have recently deteriorated drastically. After losing a T20I series earlier this month in Ireland, Afghanistan got their act together against Sri Lanka in their opening Asia Cup encounter. It was also their second-largest victory in terms of remaining balls – 59.
Bangladesh’s T20I game lacks both attacking verve and an aggressive mindset.
They enter the Asia Cup on a dismal note, having lost both white-ball matches earlier this month in Zimbabwe. They surrendered good positions in both T20I games, falling 2-1.
However, Bangladesh were missing Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim in Zimbabwe, so their return, along with that of Mohammad Saifuddin, might provide them a lift.
Despite its tiny size, Sharjah has a relatively low batting average – 143 – for sides batting first in T20Is over the last year. Even though the event begins at 6 p.m. [local time], the weather will be scorching.
Afghanistan has no need to change their starting lineup and, barring injuries, should remain intact.
Afghanistan (probable): 1 Hazratullah Zazai, 2 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 3 Ibrahim Zadran, 4 Najibullah Zadran, 5 Karim Janat, 6 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 7 Rashid Khan, 8 Azmatullah Omarzai, 9 Naveen-ul-Haq, 10 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 11 Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Bangladesh now has a few more alternatives than they had when they went to Zimbabwe with a small group. Shakib, Mushfiqur, and Saifuddin should all be included, providing balance to their lineup.
Bangladesh (probable): 1 Mohammad Naim, 2 Anamul Haque, 3 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 4 Afif Hossain, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Sabbir Rahman, 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Mohammad Saifuddin, 10 Nasum Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman.