Big picture: Chance to make amends
Pakistan are two places ahead of Bangladesh in the World Test Championship table but both teams are in the bottom half. And both are playing their first series since the T20 World Cup. Bangladesh exited from the Super Eight while Pakistan couldn’t even reach that stage, leaving both sets of fans disappointed with their performances. This Test series will be a chance to make amends. Luckily, there has been a considerable gap from the World Cup, which will allow the teams to play with a fresh perspective.
Bangladesh faced a different type of challenge in the lead-up to the series. They were not able to train in Dhaka, so the BCB took up PCB’s invitation to train for three extra days in Lahore before three more sessions in Rawalpindi. While Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusinghe is satisfied with his team’s preparation, he remained cautious about their batting, which has been on a downward swing for the last 12 months.
Pakistan, though, will not take Bangladesh lightly as the visitors’ in-form weapon is their pace attack. It may be short on experience but the likes of Khaled Ahmed and Shoriful Islam have done well with the new ball. Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana are also quick and energetic. So it will be an interesting battle against the home batters.
Form guide
Pakistan LLLWW (last five Tests, most recent first)
Bangladesh LLLWW
In the spotlight: Naseem Shah and Najmul Hossain Shanto
Team news: Shadman in place of injured Joy
Pakistan: 1 Abdullah Shafique, 2 Saim Ayub, 3 Shan Masood (capt), 4 Babar Azam, 5 Saud Shakeel, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Salman Ali Agha, 8 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 9 Naseem Shah, 10 Khurram Shahzad, 11 Mohammad Ali
Bangladesh (probable): 1 Shadman Islam, 2 Zakir Hasan, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto (capt), 4 Mominul Haque, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Shakib Al Hasan, 7 Litton Das (wk), 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Shoriful Islam, 10 Khaled Ahmed, 11 Hasan Mahmud/Nahid Rana
Pitch and conditions: Rain could play spoilsport
The pitch has a bit of grass but there is a strong belief that it could be favourable to batters. The last two Tests here have been high-scoring with teams posting totals of 657, 579, 476 for 4 dec, and 459 in their first innings. Rain, however, could play a major role as showers are forecast for all five days.
Stats and trivia: Bangladesh still to beat Pakistan
- Bangladesh are yet to win a Test against Pakistan.
- There are four players from the Bangladesh side that played their last Test in Pakistan, coincidentally also in Rawalpindi, in 2020.
- Among the current players, Shakib (508) has scored the most runs in Bangladesh-Pakistan Tests, while Taijul Islam (22), who is unlikely to play, has taken the most wickets.
Quotes
“We raise our hands to say that we didn’t win in Australia. But we did a lot of things right, a lot of things that we want to take forward with us. We made some mistakes that cost us the Melbourne and Sydney Tests but as a team, we are heading in the right direction.”
Shan Masood on bouncing back against Bangladesh.
“We had a good series against New Zealand but not a good time against Sri Lanka. We have a very good opportunity this time playing against Pakistan. We have a balanced side. We hope to play good cricket here.”
Najmul Hossain Shanto on his side’s last two Test series.
Mohammad Isam is ESPNcricinfo’s Bangladesh correspondent. @isam84