Bangladesh will host New Zealand for a three-match ODI series starting this week, giving them one more opportunity to polish their team for the ODI World Cup 2023. On Thursday, the opening encounter will take place at Dhaka’s Shere Bangla Stadium.
New Zealand will soon travel to Bangladesh before the ODI World Cup, which will be held in India later this year. Due to workload management, both sides have rested several key players for this series. Still, the players on the squad will be anxious to show themselves, and teams will attempt to fix some holes and establish crucial balance in their playing XI ahead of the World Cup. In this match, we anticipate a fierce battle between two strong teams.
BAN vs NZ Team Preview & Squads
Bangladesh
Bangladesh will be quite upset with how the recent Asia Cup turned out. Even if they did beat India in the last game as a consolation prize, their overall performance was far from satisfactory.
Bangladesh has opted to rest key players such as Shakib Al-Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Taskin Ahmed. It is a deliberate decision to safeguard them from injury before the big event.
Litton Das will captain Bangladesh in the first two ODIs of this series. Mahmadullah and Tamim Iqbal have returned to the camp and are expected to participate. Towhid Hridoy, Mahedi Hasan, and Soumya Sarkar will form the backbone of their middle-order batting.
Mustafizur Rahman will command the pace unit, which will include Tanzim Hasan, who impressed on his debut in the Asia Cup. Experienced spinners in the squad include Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, and Mahmudullah. Rishad Hossain and Khaled Mahmud are anticipated to make their series debut.
New Zealand, like the hosts, has rested some of its big players and sent a second-string squad to Bangladesh in order to construct a team for the future.
Lockie Ferguson, who is leading the national squad for the first time, will head the New Zealand team. New Zealand will be opening with Finn Allen and Will Young, with the likes of Tom Blundell, Henry Nicholls, Rachin Ravindra, and Cole McConchie likely to make an impact in the middle order.
Dean Foxcroft, who has established a solid reputation on the domestic circuit, got his first ODI invite and might bat opposite Finn Allen in the opening position.
In the pace department, skipper Lockie Ferguson will be joined by seasoned bowlers Trent Boult, Kyle Jamieson, and Adam Milne. The spin department will be handled by Ish Sodhi, Rachin Ravindra, and Cole McConchie in this match.
New Zealand Squads
New Zealand
Lockie Ferguson (c), Tom Blundell (wk), Finn Allen, Henry Nicholls, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Kyle Jamieson, Cole McConchie, Trent Boult, Ish Sodhi, and Chad Bowes.
Match Details
Match
Bangladesh vs New Zealand, 1st ODI | New Zealand tour of Bangladesh 2023
In this encounter, both teams will try to chase down the target, as chasing has become the standard in white ball cricket recently.
The weather will continue to be cloudy, with the possibility of rain.
The pitch at Shere Bangla Stadium isn’t the easiest to bat on, with an average first-inning score of roughly 250. The seamers will have some movement early in the game, but the surface will settle down in the second innings. The spinners will be quite crucial.
BAN vs NZ Head-to-Head Stats of Last 5 Matches
New Zealand has won the last five matches in a row.