Bangladesh will be looking to continue their 50-over format supremacy over the West Indies when the two sides face off in the first of the three-match ODI series at Warner Park in Basseterre, St Kitts today.聽
The match starts at 7.30pm Bangladesh Standard Time and T Sports and Nagorik TV televise the match live.
Bangladesh have played a very low number of ODI series this year, with the series against the Caribbean side being their third.
That means they will play a maximum of nine ODIs鈥攖heir lowest since 2016. This year has been a mixed bag for them with a 50-50 win-loss ratio.聽
Bangladesh won the series 2-1 against Sri Lanka in March at home while losing 1-2 to Afghanistan in the UAE last month.聽
But when it comes to the West Indies, Bangladesh have an 11-match winning streak against the Caribbean side stretching back to December 2018. They have won the past four ODI series against the West Indies.聽
Bangladesh will also certainly be motivated with the recent result in the Jamaica Test, where they turned things around to win by 101 runs and that too, with the absence of the likes of Mushfiqur Rahim and Najmul Hossain Shanto鈥攖he regular captain.聽
They both continue to be absent as Mehidy Hasan Miraz will again lead the side.聽
Bangladesh will miss Towhid Hridoy, as he was also declared unfit by the BCB鈥檚 medical team due to a groin injury.
Not only that, senior pacer Mustafizur Rahman is also unavailable as he鈥檚 on paternity leave.聽
There is also no Shakib Al Hasan, as the former captain鈥檚 future remains uncertain.聽
Despite the absence of the big names, some players are making a comeback. Liton Das and Tanzim Hasan missed the Afghanistan series due to injuries, while Afif Hossain last played in the format a year ago.聽
Tanzim and Afif recently took part in the inaugural Global Super League in Guyana. Tanzim played for the Guyana Amazon Warriors, whereas Afif represented eventual champions, Rangpur.聽
Tanzim, the 22-year-old pacer, is excited to represent the national team again.
鈥業 came here after a minor injury, but I don鈥檛 feel like I鈥簐e come back from an injury,鈥� said Tanzim.聽
鈥業鈥檓 feeling well, Alhamdulillah. My bowling is okay now;聽 my mentality is good.鈥�
Nahid Rana, the new pace sensation, will also be ready to stir a storm as he did in the second Test.
The 22-year-old fast bowler remains unperturbed with all the hype around him.聽
鈥業 don鈥檛 think about what鈥檚 going on the internet,鈥� said the speedstar from Chapainawabganj.聽
鈥業鈥檓 just focusing on my performance. Learning is a never-ending process. I鈥檝e learnt how to bowl in these kinds of conditions.鈥�
The Warner Park also holds happy memories for the Tigers, as it is where the winning streak against the West Indies started for the Tigers in 2018. In fact, the Warner Park hasn鈥檛 hosted an ODI since then.
The ground is typically a high-scoring one, as the average winnings score in the first innings has been 313 so far.聽
The teams batting first also dominated as they won 13 out of 18 matches played here.聽
