Bangladesh opt to bat first in ‘do or die’ contest against Afghanistan

Bangladesh captain Liton Das decided to bat first after winning the toss against Afghanistan in crucial Asia Cup game at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi today.

The match, the last group fixture of Bangladesh, is a must-win game for them in a bid to stay alive in the tournament.

Bangladesh beat Hong Kong by seven wickets before tasting a six-wicket defeat to Sri Lanka in the previous game.

However, they made four changes for today’s match with fast bowler Taskin Ahmed returning to the fold along with left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed, Nurul Hasan Sohan and Saif Hasan.

Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib and opener Parvez Hossain Emon were left out from the previous squad.

“This is a must win game for us so all boys are excited for this game,” Bangladesh captain Liton Das said after the toss, brimming with confidence to win against the Afghans.

He cited the pitch as slower and predicted that 160 would be a total to win the game.

“The wicket looks a bit on the slower side, 160 would be a good total. It looks like a good batting surface, but a bit on the slower side,” he added.

“The mood in the camp is good, we have had a good last few months. We can't think too much about the previous game.” he said.

Afghanistan had crushed Hong Kong by 94 runs in their only game in the tournament. If they win today’s match, they will move to the Super 4 along with Sri Lanka.

However, a defeat of Afghanistan still keeps them relevant in the tournament.

Afghanistan remained unchanged for this game.

Line Ups:

Bangladesh: Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Saif Hassan, Liton Das(w/c), Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali Anik, Shamim Patwari, Nasum Ahmed, Nurul Hasan Sohan, Rishad Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Taskin Ahmed
Afghanistan: Sediqullah Atal, Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan(c), Noor Ahmad, AM Ghazanfar, Fazalhaq Farooqi.