The ICC World Twenty20 2014 match on Sunday March 16, 2014 between Bangladesh and Afghanistan will be played at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, for Match 1 of ICC T20 World Cup 2014.
The match will start at 15:30 Local Bangladesh Time; 16:00 IST; 09:30 GMT on Sunday, March 16, 2014. Star Sports TV will broadcast the tournament live and it can be watched live on Star Sports website.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan is making an impressive entry into world map of cricket. In 2013, it won 26 of 28 matches it played against other Associate or affiliate nations apart from Ireland. This is its third ICC Global Event, close on the heels of its interesting debut at the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, though it lost in the hands of champions India and South Africa in the Group Stage.
Bangladesh
The hosts will be itching to prove a point after their loss against the same opposition recently in the Asia Cup. The formats might differ but the core composition of both sides remain the same and that adds an extra edge to the contest.
Being the host, Bangladesh should strive to reatin the match as it happened thrice in the past. So far, Bangladesh has appeared in all four ICC World Twenty20 tournaments and the last four ICC Cricket World Cups since 1999.
In 2000, Bangladesh acquired ICC Full Member status. It won its first ICC World Twenty20 match in 2007, beating West Indies by six wickets at Johannesburg, but has lost all ten of its fixtures in the competition since then.
In 2013, Bangladesh improved form under its current captain Mushfiqur Rahim across all formats, particularly at home, should provide the team with confidence.
In October 2013, in a match against New Zealand at Chittagong, off-spinner Sohag Gazi became the first man in history to score a century and take a hat-trick in the same Test. The two-match was a draw and Bangladesh followed it up by whitewashing the Black Caps 3-0 in the subsequent ODI series.
Men To Watch
Shakib Al Hasan: You get the feeling the hugely talented former skipper wants to use this competition to remind both his own supporters, as well as the watching public at large, of just how prodigiously talented he can be with both bat and ball.
And what is more, in his own familiar conditions at home, the 26-year-old will be more than a threat with ball in hand, while his powerful middle-order batting should also not be underestimated, as befits the world’s seventh-best bowler and fourth-rated all-rounder in T20s.
Mohammad Nabi: The captain will be desperate to lead from the front in this tournament and if anyone can inspire his team-mates on to bigger and better things in their three Group A qualifiers, then it is the impressive 29-year-old.
However, it is Nabi’s bowling of his canny off-spinners that is sure to play a massive role in just how his side get on and with an impressive career economy rate of just 7.15 runs per over, the tweaker should enjoy the subcontinental surfaces he will be playing on.
Teams
Bangladesh (From): Mushfiqur Rahim(c), Al-Amin Hossain, Farhad Reza, Mashrafe Mortaza, Nasir Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Abdur Razzak, Anamul Haque(w), Mahmudullah, Mominul Haque, Rubel Hossain, Shamsur Rahman, Sohag Gazi
Afghanistan (From): Mohammad Nabi(c), Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Karim Sadiq, Mohammad Shahzad(w), Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shenwari, Shapoor Zadran, Asghar Stanikzai, Gulbadin Naib, Hamza Hotak, Mirwais Ashraf, Najeeb Taraki, Nawroz Mangal, Shafiqullah Shafiq
