Bangladesh will begin their World Cup 2023 against Afghanistan at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala on Saturday. Both of these teams will look to get off to a winning start in their campaign and tick the right boxes.
When these two teams had met recently in the Asia Cup, Bangladesh had won by a massive margin of 89 runs. However, when these two teams faced each other in a three-match ODI series, Afghanistan stunned the Tigers by 2-1 while playing in Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, Shakib Al Hasan will look to lead from the front and get the best out of his players. Spinners will also play a key role for Bangladesh and also for Afghanistan.
In fact, Afghanistan has a potent bowling attack as they have bowlers like Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad, and Fazalhaq Farooqi. However, it will be interesting to note how Afghanistan’s batting will fare in the ODI showpiece.
Both of these teams have a lot of potential in their squad and it will be about who executes better on the given day. Bangladesh has more experience and the likes of Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das, and Mustafizur Rahman will hold the key for the Tigers.
On the other hand, Rashid Khan will be the trump card for Afghanistan throughout their campaign.
Match Prediction: Bangladesh will enter as slight favorites against Afghanistan.
Afghanistan squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdul Rahman, Naveen ul Haq.
Bangladesh squad: Shakib Al Hasan (c), Litton Kumer Das, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto (vc), Tawhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nasum Ahmed, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib.
