Bangladesh and Australia will play their first ever bilateral T20I series from 3 August. The five-match series will conclude in just seven days with two sets of back-to-back games as players of both sides will be looking to impress the selectors ahead of the T20 World Cup. All five matches will be played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka.
Bangladesh will miss the services of Tamim Iqbal, following an injury; Liton Das, who will be attending a family emergency; and Mushfiqur Rahim, because of Australia's stringent bio-bubble rules.
And still, Bangladesh will be high on confidence following their dominant show over Zimbabwe across all formats last month. They have found two fearless finishers in Afif Hossain and Shamim Hossain, while the seniors, Shakib Al Hasan and Soumya Sarkar, have also been in red-hot form both with bat and ball.
Mohammad Naim is likely to open with Sarkar, while Nurul Hasan will continue to keep wickets in the absence of both Das and Mushfiqur. Taskin Ahmed is their automatic choice in the seam attack. If Mahmudullah decides to go with two left-arm pacers alongside Taskin, Shoriful Islam and Mustafizur Rahman may both feature ahead of Mohammed Saifuddin.
The second-string Australian side recently lost 1-4 in the West Indies. Though they came back to win the ODIs 2-1, they did not quite dominate that either. Furthermore, Aaron Finch, the No. 3-ranked T20I batter, has been ruled out of the series after a knee injury on the tour. Matthew Wade will lead in his absence.
Australia’s two Mitchell – Starc and Marsh – will be key for their success. Starc had found his rhythm on the Caribbean tour after being wayward in the first two matches, while Marsh produced excellent all-round shows in the T20Is. Adam Zampa and Josh Hazlewood will be in focus as well.
The Mirpur pitch is traditionally slow and sluggish. Bangladesh are unlikely to make any experiment on that. Also, there is a chance of thunderstorms during match time.
Head to Head
Australia have played Bangladesh four times, all in T20 World Cups. They are currently maintaining a 100 percent win record.
Betway Fantasy Tips
– Bet on Bangladesh. They have got everything covered, despite missing some important players.
– Pick Shakib and Marsh as captain and vice-captain respectively. Sarkar can be a safe choice as well.
– If you bet on Australia, do not forget to include Mitchell Starc in your fantasy XI. In fact, make him vice-captain.
Likely XIs
Bangladesh: Mahmudullah (c), Nurul Hasan (wk), Mohammad Naim, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan, Afif Hossain, Mosaddek Hossain, Shamim Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Taskin Ahmed.
Australia: Matthew Wade (c & wk), Ben McDermott, Josh Philippe, Mitchell Marsh, Moises Henriques, Ashton Turner, Daniel Christian, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.
Prediction
Bangladesh should win the contest.