Bangladesh tour of New Zealand, 2023

NZ vs BAN, 1st T20I

Preview 

Bangladesh (BAN) and New Zealand (NZ) cross swords in the first match of the three T20I series on Wednesday, December 27 at McLean Park, Napier. Having won the ODI series by 2-1, the hosts will be heading into the T20I leg high on confidence.

The third and final match of the ODI series saw Bangladesh create history, defeating NZ at home for the very first time in One Day cricket. Despite achieving this feat, the visitors failed to cause any real impact to the series as the black caps had already gained an unassailable 2-0 lead. 

Mitchell Santner will lead the hosts whereas Najmul Hossain Shanto will be at the helm of Bangladesh. In the absence of some of their senior players including the likes of Kane Williamson, Kyle Jamieson, the youngsters will need to step up and make their chances count. 

Jacob Duffy and Rachin Ravindra replaced Kyle Jamieson and Kane Williamson in the squad, keeping their fitness concerns in mind and NZ’s upcoming cricketing schedule. Soumya Sarkar and Shoriful Islam are in decent form for BAN off late and they will hope to continue the same in the T20Is. 

Match Details

Match: NZ vs BAN, 1st T20I, Bangladesh tour of New Zealand, 2023

Date: Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Time: 11:40 AM

Venue: McLean Park, Napier

Pitch and Weather Report

We expect the batters to have a ball at this wicket. It tends to drop off as the match progresses, which is when the bowlers will come into play. Rain is predicted for the day but it is highly unlikely that we see any rain interruptions. While the evening will be cloudy and humid, the weather is expected to be encouraging. 

NZ vs BAN Squads

NZ: Mitchell Santner (c), Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Adam Milne, Ben Sears, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Jacob Duffy

BAN: Litton Das (wk), Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Rony Talukdar, Shamim Hossain, Towhid Hridoy, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Rishad Hossain, Tanvir Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib

NZ vs BAN Probable Playing XIs

NZ: Finn Allen, Tim Seifert (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner (c), Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Ben Sears.

BAN: Soumya Sarkar, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Litton Das (wk), Towhid Hridoy, Tanzim Hasan, Afif Hossain, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Mustafizur Rahman.

Match Prediction

Though New Zealand are without few of their key players, they will be favourites to emerge victorious. They have decimated Bangladesh in the past, and playing in home conditions will further encourage them to draw first blood.  We predict the hosts to win the series opener. 

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