Bangladesh have everything at stake in this match. Zimbabwe completely humiliated them in the previous match, losing by a massive margin of 151 runs. The fact that this loss came at home, and against a team placed below them in the ICC rankings, hurt their pride even more. The Tigers are wounded, but it is said that a wounded Tiger is even more dangerous.
So the hosts will hopefully make an even stronger comeback in this match. Their main concern in the last few Test matches has been their batting. They haven't crossed the score of 200 in the last eight innings, which sums up why they have always been on the wrong side of the results, despite their bowlers doing so well. So batting is an area they need to work on. Their bowling, especially their spin department, has been fantastic as per usual. Their bowling is something they would bank on once again in this match.
Zimbabwe, on the other hand, have shown a lot of courage, determination and grit so far on this tour. Nobody would have expected them to win the previous Test match, particularly in this grand manner. But they did the unthinkable. It was a complete team effort in which each individual made valuable contributions and thus made the victory possible. They will look to carry this momentum forward into this Test match as well. Their bowlers did extremely well and so did their lower-middle and lower order batsmen. The only area they need
Bangladesh have everything at stake in this match. Zimbabwe completely humiliated them in the previous match, losing by a massive margin of 151 runs. The fact that this loss came at home, and against a team placed below them in the ICC rankings, hurt their pride even more. The Tigers are wounded, but it is said that a wounded Tiger is even more dangerous.
So the hosts will hopefully make an even stronger comeback in this match. Their main concern in the last few Test matches has been their batting. They haven't crossed the score of 200 in the last eight innings, which sums up why they have always been on the wrong side of the results, despite their bowlers doing so well. So batting is an area they need to work on. Their bowling, especially their spin department, has been fantastic as per usual. Their bowling is something they would bank on once again in this match.
Zimbabwe, on the other hand, have shown a lot of courage, determination and grit so far on this tour. Nobody would have expected them to win the previous Test match, particularly in this grand manner. But they did the unthinkable. It was a complete team effort in which each individual made valuable contributions and thus made the victory possible. They will look to carry this momentum forward into this Test match as well. Their bowlers did extremely well and so did their lower-middle and lower order batsmen. The only area they need to work on is their top and middle order batting.
Conditions: Mostly sunny. No possibility of rain. Pitch will be dry and dusty with cracks in some places.
Player Recommendations:
Wicket-keeper: Mushfiqur Rahim
The experienced Mushfiqur Rahim didn't have the best of times in the previous match as he returned scores of only 31 and 13. However, he is someone who has the habit of standing tall in situations of crisis. With their pride at stake in this match, we may well see him amongst some big runs. Also, expect him to get plenty of points from catches and stumpings.
Batsman: Hamilton Masakadza
The Zimbabwean opener was the second highest scorer in the previous match with 100 runs to his name. Only Sean Williams bettered him with a total of 108 runs. While he scored important 88 runs in the first innings, he couldn't make as big an impact in the second as he could manage only 20 runs. However, Masakadza seemed to be consistent across both innings as he registered scores of 52 and 48 runs in the two innings. He seemed to be in great touch and looks all set for a big knock in this match.
All-rounder: Sikandar Raza
Raza picked up six wickets in the last match with his leg spin. He couldn't manage big scores with the bat as he perished for scores of 19 and 25 in the two innings respectively. But he is too good a player to repeat the same mistakes again and hence there are high chances that he will get a big score with the bat next time. As far as his bowling is concerned, he bowled almost double the number of overs as compared to that of Williams in the previous match. And that is the reason for picking him ahead of Williams as the all-rounder.
Bowler: Taijul Islam
The left arm orthodox spinner picked up 11 wickets in the last match as the Zimbabwean batsmen looked to be at sea against him. He bowled perfect line and lengths, flighted his deliveries superbly, varied his pace well and hence reaped the rewards of his efforts. With the pitch at Dhaka traditionally favouring spinners, it would be foolish to ignore him.
Captain: Sikandar Raza
Vice-captain: Sean Williams
