AFG vs BAN, 1st T20I, Match Prediction: Who will win the match today, Afghanistan or Bangladesh?

After a significant break in their respective international calendars, Afghanistan and Bangladesh are all set to lock horns in the first of the three-match T20I series on Sunday. Rajeev Gandhi International Stadium in Dehradun will become India’s 51st international venue when the captains of both the teams will walk out for a toss. While only a couple of players of the home side (Afghanistan) were involved in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL), Shakib Al Hasan was the lone cricketer from Bangladesh to play his trade in the tournament.

The three-match tussle holds a lot of significance as the teams will be hitting the straps after a gap of more than two months. The hosts will be much more eager to prove themselves as they are placed higher in the latest ICC T20I rankings. Bangladesh will be led by Shakib who has been playing continuous cricket ever since he has recovered from his finger injury and will be key to their success.  Rashid Khan, however, will also look to continue to ride on his success in the IPL.

Pitch and Conditions

The fact that this is the first international game at the venue puts the teams in jeopardy as they will be confused on how the pitch will behave. Given the nature of the format, it is expected to be a flat wicket and a plenty of runs will be on offer. Also, the dew will play its part as it has been the case in India over the last couple of months. The bowlers will have to do the damage control by bowling decent lines and lengths.

Playing Combination

Afghanistan

Afghanistan has more or less picked a similar squad which defeated Zimbabwe in February in the United Arab Emirates. Karim Sadiq who opened the innings in that series is not in the group this time around which means Usman Ghani will open alongside Mohammad Shahzad. They would just resist handing debuts to the youngsters like Darwish Rasooli and Karim Janat as it is only the first game of the series. The middle-order is filled with the experience of the skipper Asghar Stanikzai, Najibullah Zadran and Mohammad Nabi.

Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman will look after the spin department while Shapoor Zadran will lead the pace bowling attack. It will be interesting to see if the left-arm spin of Sharafuddin Ashraf will be preferred over the medium pace of Aftab Alam. The former might keep his place with Gulbadin Naib expected to chip in with a few overs if needed.

Predicted XI: Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Usman Ghani, Asghar Stanikzai (c), Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Shapoor Zadran

Bangladesh

Bangladesh might not have forgotten the heartbreaking loss in the Nidahas Trophy final against India when Dinesh Karthik got better of them in just 8 balls. But they would know that as a team they need to move on and make sure they put up a good performance to beat Afghanistan. Even their squad is almost the same apart from a couple of changes. They will, unfortunately, miss Mustafizur Rahman who pulled out of the series at the eleventh hour due to the injury he sustained while playing in the IPL.

Tamim Iqbal will be accompanied by Liton Das at the top of the order as the combination worked for them in the previous tournament. Soumya Sarkar will be batting in the middle-order it seems and it remains to be seen Sabbir Rahman will continue to get more chances at number 3. Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim also can bat up the order according to the situation. Abul Hasan should come into the contention for Mustafizur as he has the pace and can rattle the opposition with Nazmul Islam continuing to handle the spin responsibilities with Mehidy Hasan.

Predicted XI: Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Shakib Al Hasan (c), Mahmudullah, Sabbir Rahman, Mehidy Hasan, Rubel Hossain, Abul Hasan, Nazmul Islam

Probable Top Performers

Mohammad Shahzad (Afghanistan), Mushfiqur Rahim (Bangladesh)

Head to Head

Matches – 1, Afghanistan – 0, Bangladesh – 1

The timing of the match: 08:00 pm IST

Broadcast Details

TV – 1 TV (Afghanistan)

The prediction is for Afghanistan to win the first game and take the 1-0 lead in the series.

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