Bangladesh Cricket Team reaches Pakistan ahead of two-match Test series

The Bangladesh Cricket Team reached Pakistan on Tuesday, August 13, ahead of the two-match Test series, starting next week.

The Bangladeshi contingent arrived at Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport and they had to go through stringent security measures before being escorted to their hotel by police and other law enforcement agencies. Bangladesh will be training at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium for three days before heading to Islamabad.

Also Read: Taskin Ahmed returns to Bangladesh Test squad for upcoming series against Pakistan

According to the itinerary, the Bangla Tigers will be resting on Tuesday before starting their preparations from Wednesday. The first Test is scheduled to be played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi, beginning on Wednesday, August 21. Meanwhile, the second Test is going to be played at the National Stadium in Karachi from August 30 onwards.

Najmul Hossain Shanto is going to lead the Bangladesh side which comprises senior pros like Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Mominul Haque, among others. Shakib will be linking up with the squad later from Canada.

Meanwhile, eight players from Pakistan's 17-man Test squad are part of Pakistan Shaheens' squad for the first four-day match against Bangladesh A, which begins on August 13. These players will join the Test squad after the completion of the four-day encounter. Saud Shakeel, who has been named as the vice-captain in the Test squad, will be leading the Shaheens in the four-day clash.

Pakistan are currently placed at No. 5 on the World Test Championship (WTC) points table for the 2023-2025 cycle. They have won two games and lost three out of the five that they have played. Meanwhile, Bangladesh find themselves languishing at No. 8, just above the West Indies. From four matches, Bangladesh have registered a solitary win and lost the other three games.

Also Read: Shakib will be available for all of Bangladesh's Tests this year: Chief Selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu

Pakistan and Bangladesh will be returning to action for the first time since the T20 World Cup in June. While Pakistan were ousted in the first round, Bangladesh made it to the Super Eight stage before crashing out.