Hosts face Afghan test

Ever since Afghanistan and Bangladesh were pitted in the same group in the first round of the ICC World Twenty20, talk about the possibility of the hosts suffering an embarrassing exit from the grand event flooded various public forums. In a way it depicted the common man's thought that, despite having made so much progress over the last two years, on a given day a jittery Bangladesh can fall prey to the enthusiastic Afghans.
And so when the teams go into battle in the fifth game of the Asia Cup at Fatullah today, it will be more than just a group game. A win for either side would not only provide them with an edge in this tournament but will also prove to be a confidence-booster ahead of the mega event in March. The two teams have faced each other just twice at the top level, both times in T20s -- one of which was during the Asian Games -- and both of which were won by Bangladesh.
At the moment it seems as though both these sides are at opposite ends of the spectrum as far as their 'team morale' is concerned. While the Afghans are flying high from their brilliant bowling performance against Pakistan, the injury-hit Tigers are not even sure if they can field a regular captain for their side.
Injuries to Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, who has been ruled out of the tournament due to a side strain, and Mushfiqur Rahim, who will play only if he passes a morning fitness test before the match today, would mean that the hosts would have to ring in the changes.
If the captain does not play he will be replaced by Imrul Kayes, the only other batsman remaining in the squad. That would mean that Anamul Haque, Shamsur Rahman and Imrul will make up the top three, which would push Mominul Haque to number four. The middle order is expected to remain the same with Naeem Islam, Nasir Hossain and Ziaur Rahman. The other change would be a replacement for Mashrafe. While there are two pacers -- Shafiul Islam and Al Amin Hossain -- in the squad, Afghanistan's struggle against spin and the fact that they have nine right-handed batsmen in the squad might encourage the hosts to bring in slow left-armer Arafat Sunny. He might join Shohag Gazi and Abdur Razzak to form a spin trio with Rubel Hossain expected to be the specialist pacer in the side.
On the other hand, Afghanistan's bowling will be led by their pacers. Hamid Hassan, their strike bowler is expected to join the squad after missing out the game against Pakistan due to an injury. He will join Dawlat and Shapoor Zadran. Noor Ali Zadran, who scored a fluent 44 in the last game, will be a key player. Another player that the hosts will be wary of is captain Mohammad Nabi, who played for Mohammedan Sporting in the last Dhaka Premier League and surprised many with his brilliant all-round effort. With at least five players from the squad having played domestic cricket here they will be aware of the conditions.