After two lop-sided affairs at Mirpur that gave Pakistan a decisive 2-0 lead, the last match of the one-day series is to be played at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in the port city of Chittagong. Expectedly, much of the excitement has already fizzled out.
Even though the Chittagong crowd will have to cheer their team in a dead rubber, this probably is Bangladesh’s best chance of getting off the mark given their recent record in bilateral series’. Against Zimbabwe and more recently, against West Indies at home, Bangladesh managed to find their top-gear in such inconsequential matches.
As has been the case for most part of 2011, Bangladesh’s top-order troubles just don’t seem to have an end. Game after game, their batting is going from bad to worse. Against Pakistan, their top half has been a big disappointment. You don’t win matches against even average sides at 19 for 4; forget beating an in-form Pakistan with batting that falls like the proverbial pack of cards.
Amidst all this gloom, young Nasir Hossain has shone like a lone star in the night sky. The 20-year-old’s resolve in the second match was nothing short of a lesson for some of his senior team mates. For Bangladesh team management, the priority would be to prevent another top-order disintegration otherwise this is going to be a long nightmare.
On the other hand, Pakistan would be looking to give some of their non-regular players a chance to show their prowess. Asad Shafiq is likely to find a spot in the playing eleven in place of Imran Farhat- patchy form with the bat makes him vulnerable.
Without a doubt, Pakistan are riding a crest. This is their fourth consecutive ODI series win after the semi-final appearance in World Cup. True, some of that has come against the lesser teams, however, the manner in which these victories are being fashioned makes them a force to reckon with.
Bangladesh Squad: Mushfiqur Rahim (c & wk), Mahmudullah (vc), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Shakib Al Hasan, Alok Kapali, Naeem Islam, Nasir Hossain, Shafiul Islam, Abdur Razzak, Nazmul Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Elias Sunny, Farhad Reza, Shahriar Nafees.
Pakistan squad: Misbah-ul-Haq (c), Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Shahid Afridi, Younis Khan, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Saeed Ajmal, Abdul Rehman, Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema, Junaid Khan, Sohail Tanvir, Abdul Razzaq, Asad Shafiq
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