Tigers favourites against second string Kiwis

New Zealand are touring Bangladesh for the first time since 2013. Bangladesh are yet to win a T20I against the visitors and with many of the first-choice players not playing, the hosts will see this series as an ideal opportunity to register another historic performance. Bangladesh's records against New Zealand at home speak for themselves too, having won seven out of last eight white-ball games.

Bangladesh have recently won a five-match T20I series 4-1 against Australia and will definitely want to sustain the momentum, going into the T20 World Cup later this year. On the other hand, none of the players featuring in the squad is part of New Zealand's World Cup squad and the series will be a huge opportunity for the youngsters to make an impression.

Bangladesh have been strengthened by the return of Mushfiqur Rahim and Liton Das, two of their key players in this format. Mushfiqur will be back batting at his preferred number four position and Liton's return means there are three contenders now for the two opening slots- Liton, Mohammad Naim and Soumya Sarkar. 

"What's good is that there are options in the team and competition for places and that's good to see."

Skipper Mahmudullah said in the pre-match press conference that Mahedi Hasan can also be an option. "Liton is also an outstanding opener. Soumya has been in good form. Nayeem is the top-ranked opener in the T20I team. Mahedi is also another option. What's good is that there are options in the team and competition for places and that's good to see," he said.

Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo, in the pre-series press conference, said that Nurul Hasan will keep wickets in the first two games and since Mushfiqur will return at four, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain and Nurul will be slotted at five, six and seven respectively. 

Although Domingo said that he would love to have pitches where 150-160 will be par, the pitches are likely to be more or less the same as the Australia series. Spinners will have a major role to play here and New Zealand have to be very wary of the three-pronged Bangladesh spin attack. But Mustafizur Rahman will prove to be the biggest threat with his deadly cutters and slower deliveries. New Zealand stand-in coach Glenn Pocknall said that they will try to 'something different' to upset the rhythm of Mustafizur. 

"Mustafiz at the top of the innings, is renowned for his slower balls. We saw how he bowled against Australia. The spinners at the top and through the middle will present the challenges. Guys have been working really hard for the last five days to come up with plans best to negate them. We are looking forward to facing them tomorrow."

New Zealand skipper Tom Latham said, "Mustafiz at the top of the innings, is renowned for his slower balls. We saw how he bowled against Australia. The spinners at the top and through the middle will present the challenges. Guys have been working really hard for the last five days to come up with plans best to negate them. We are looking forward to facing them tomorrow."

This is essentially a second-string New Zealand side but they are quite a good side in T20s, having some of the best performers of the Super Smash, New Zealand's domestic T20 competition. The spotlight will be on uncapped Rachin Ravindra, the batting all-rounder and fast bowler Ben Sears.

Bangladesh skipper Mahmudullah is aware of the potential of this New Zealand team and said that they are a very good side in terms of planning and execution. He mentioned, "The T20I format is such a game where there are no real favourites. It's about performing on the day. New Zealand are a very disciplined team. We have to be at our best."

Ahead of the Bangladesh tour, New Zealand spent hours practising spinning wickets at Mount Maunganui and Lincoln. A lot will depend on Tom Latham, the captain. His style of batting will suit the conditions and the southpaw is an excellent player of spin. He said, "We are preparing for the wickets that Australia faced about a month ago. We had some really good camps in New Zealand. We have to play on a surface that will be a lot more challenging than what we expect. We have acclimatized to the conditions here in the last five days. We have five games here, so wickets will be used two or three times. We have to adapt to each surface in each game. We have to wait and see what we get."

As Hamish Bennett pointed out, players doing well in the series might get a 'wild card entry' in New Zealand's World Cup squad and also be named as a replacement if someone gets injured. The experience of Bennett and Colin de Grandhomme will come in handy for the Black Caps. 

New Zealand have a lot of all-rounders on the side and Latham said it will make it easier to find the balance. "We have to find our best team. There are a lot of all-rounders in the group, which makes it easier to find the right combination. We have some new guys in the group, some experienced and some inexperienced, so a mixture of that makes for an exciting tour," said the New Zealand skipper.

The hosts will face New Zealand in the first match of the series on Wednesday. The match will begin at 4 pm local time.