After sweeping Afghanistan in the recently concluded three-game T20I series, Bangladesh face them in an ODI series consisting of a similar number of matches starting at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi today.
The match is scheduled to begin at 6:00pm Bangladesh Standard Time and T Sports will telecast it live, while it can also be watched online on Tapmad.
Despite their recent success in the shortest format, Bangladesh will enter the ODI series at a disadvantage, considering their inconsistent performances in a format that was once regarded as their favourite and strongest.
Bangladesh have won just seven games out of 26 played since the World Cup in 2023, and they have recently slipped to 10th in the ICC ODI rankings.
If their position in the rankings doesn鈥檛 improve, they might have to play in the qualifier to book a spot in the next World Cup.
They lost the last three bilateral series; one of those came against Afghanistan in November last year. Their last series win was against Sri Lanka at home in March last year.
Batting has been the biggest concern for the Tigers in the format, as they were restricted below 250 runs 17 times since the beginning of the last World Cup while losing 13 of those matches.
Bangladesh will face a tough challenge in batting during the build-up to the next World Cup, scheduled for October-November 2027, due to the absence of experienced batters like Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, and Shakib Al Hasan.
Bangladesh will have to depend on Towhid Hridoy, captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Jaker Ali, and Shamim Hossain in the middle order after Najmul Hossain Shanto, who is set to play at three.
They called up Saif Hassan, their standout performer in the Asia Cup and in the T20I series against Afghanistan, who has yet to make his ODI debut.
Nurul Hasan was also included in the absence of Liton Das, who was still recovering from his side strain injury. However, Naim Sheikh remained uncertain for the series, as he was yet to obtain his聽visa.
Bangladesh will also have a new-look pace attack, as Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana joined the ODI team.
The Zayed Cricket Stadium is known for its low-scoring ODIs, as the average runs per six balls there is 5.47 in the three matches played since the start of 2024.
Bangladesh last played in an ODI in Abu Dhabi in 2018, when they beat Pakistan by 37 runs in the Asia Cup. Only Mehidy and Mustafiz are in the current squad from that match.
