SOUTHAMPTON: Bangladesh will look to inch closer to the ICC Cricket World
Cup 2019 semi-finals when they face an already-eliminated Afghanistan side here on
Monday.
Afghanistan, who fell agonisingly short of India’s target on Saturday, 22 June, are still
in search of their first win at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019.
Bangladesh’s batting, built on the promotion of Shakib Al Hasan at No.3, has been one
of the highlights of the World Cup, characterised by consistently good scores. After
hunting down a target of 322 against West Indies in just 41.3 overs, Bangladesh fought
admirably in a 382-run chase against Australia, finishing with an impressive 333/8.
The bowling, however, has been their undoing, as Bangladesh have conceded scores
in excess of 320 in each of their last three completed games. Against a strong Afghanistan
bowling attack, Bangladesh’s own bowlers will have to step up to make life easier for their
batsmen.
Afghanistan, having lost to India by a narrow margin of 11 runs on Saturday, will be filled
with a lot of self-belief and motivation when they take the field on Monday. With experience
of the conditions in Southampton, Gulbadin Naib will expect his spinners to weave their
magic once again against an in-form Bangladesh batting line-up. Their batsmen though,
will have to focus on staying at the crease for longer periods to get the desired result.
Squads:
Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Abu Jayed, Liton Das (wk), Mahmudullah, Mehidy
Hasan, Mohammad Mithun (wk), Mohammad Saifuddin, Mosaddek Hossain, Mushfiqur
Rahim (wk), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shakib Al Hasan,
Soumya Sarkar, Tamim Iqbal
Afghanistan: Gulbadin Naib (c), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah (wk),
Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari,
Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb ur
Rahman, Ikram Ali Khil.
(AGENCIES)
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