In the autumn afternoon of Sharjah, the captains of the two teams unveiled the trophy while standing on the field. When the two captains Nazmul Hossain Shanto and Hashmatullah Shahidi come down to toss at Sharjah International Cricket Stadium today at 4 pm Bangladesh time, they will also witness a record. With this match, the stadium will be the first to make a record of hosting 300 international cricket matches.
The seeds of cricket were sown in the desert kingdom in the early eighties. With huge financial investment, proper use of technology and improved management, cricket has come alive like a green tree in this gray land. Sharjah was once the center of Emirates cricket festival. That Sharjah is going to complete his 'triple century' in international cricket today. Afghanistan is ready to challenge Bangladesh in the milestone match in Sharjah. Even though Bangladesh won 10 out of 16 ODIs played against Afghanistan, there is no way to say that the fight between the two teams is unequal. Afghans can challenge any team in the world in white ball cricket. The game there was again at their 'home ground' in Sharjah, where they won 18 of the 28 ODIs. A few days ago, they won the ODI series here against South Africa. In Sharjah, where Afghanistan is quite accustomed, Bangladesh is playing an ODI at this ground after 29 years. All the times Bangladesh have stepped on this field in the last three years, they have played T20s.
Bangladesh's recent form is not good either, drowning in the sands of failure. Having not won a single match against India and South Africa recently, visa complications have added to the challenge for Bangladesh in this series. The team's left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed and Nahid Runner did not go to Dubai yesterday as they did not get UAE visa. No Shakib Al Hasan, Taijul Islam was not considered in the ODI squad. Bangladesh is going to play the first match without any left-arm spinner. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hasmatullah Shahidi in Afghanistan's batting line-up – the abundance of right-handed batsmen is evident.
However, the team management did not plan to play Nasum today due to leg spinner Rishad Hossain. However, it is important for all teams to have enough substitute players. Today, if there is any problem in Sharjah's conditions, the team management will be in a lot of trouble if they go down with three pacers. The Bangladesh team management is optimistic, all those who will play in the Bangladesh XI in the first ODI have been very well prepared in the last two days of practice.
In the last few months, Bangladesh was only busy with Tests and T20s, but was away from 50-over cricket. Before the 2025 Champions Trophy, Bangladesh is getting a chance to play six ODIs. That was the first three of the six ODIs against Afghanistan in Sharjah. The remaining three are on the West Indies tour in December. With this series, Bangladesh is also getting a chance to create a roadmap for the Champions Trophy.
