World Cup preparation mission: Bangladesh face Zimbabwe today

Bangladesh's cricket team begins its mission to fine-tune preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup. As the first step of that campaign, the Tigers take on Zimbabwe today, Saturday, in the opening match of a tri-nation ODI series in the United Arab Emirates. The match starts in Abu Dhabi at 5:30 pm Bangladesh time.

Afghanistan are Bangladesh's other opponents in the series. Besides assessing their strengths, weaknesses and team combination ahead of the World Cup, Litton Das's side aims to begin the tournament with a win.

From October 2025 to June 2026, Bangladesh won four bilateral series. Thanks to this consistent success, the Tigers secured direct qualification for the 2027 World Cup by finishing among the top eight teams in the ODI rankings. Now they want to push their World Cup preparations further with a strong showing in the tri-nation series.

However, there is no room to take Zimbabwe lightly. In the two teams' most recent bilateral series in July this year, Bangladesh lost 2-1. Litton and his teammates will want to put that defeat behind them and return to winning ways. Maintaining consistency in batting and bowling, and playing effective cricket in pressure moments, will be a key test for the team.

A tri-nation series is not a new experience for Bangladesh, though. In 2019, the Tigers won the title in a tri-nation series in Ireland, also involving the hosts and the West Indies. Bangladesh won the rain-affected final by five wickets under the rain rule. Mosaddek Hossain Saikat was named player of the match for a blistering 52 off 27 balls.

Bangladesh will want to repeat that success this time as well. Beyond the fight for the title, though, the series' bigger goal will be finding the right team balance before the World Cup.

Bangladesh squad: Litton Das (captain), Towhid Hridoy (vice-captain), Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Saif Hassan, Soumya Sarkar, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nurul Hasan Sohan, Rishad Hossain, Tanvir Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam and Alis Al Islam.

Bangladesh's match schedule
October 17: Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe, Abu Dhabi
October 19: Afghanistan vs Zimbabwe, Abu Dhabi
October 21: Afghanistan vs Bangladesh, Sharjah
October 23: Final, Sharjah