Pakistan to begin World Twenty20 campaign vs Bangladesh today

Despite their recent improvements in 50-over cricket, Bangladesh have a rotten record in the World T20 and have never beaten Pakistan in the premier tournament of cricket’s shortest format.

Bangladesh cruised through last week’s preliminary round of the tournament and know and now fancy a victory over Pakistan to attempt to reach the semi-finals of the event for the first time.

Star batsman Tamim Iqbal is in the form of his life, scoring Bangladesh’s first ever international T20 century in Sunday’s victory over Oman after scores of 83 and 47 in the first two games.

Pakistan coach Waqar Younis said that the team’s troubled build-up to the tournament did not mean they should be written off.

“We’re the kind of team that once we get the momentum going, we can surprise people,” Younis said in a pre-match press conference.

The former bowling great also backed the big-hitting Afridi to rediscover the kind of form with the bat that earned him the nickname Boom Boom.

“It takes less than a minute to lose form and to get it back as well. T20 cricket is like that, we’re hoping that he’s one innings away from getting back his old form,” said Younis.

Bangladesh’s build-up has been serene in comparison to the dramas in Pakistan’s camp.

But after seeing off Oman, the Netherlands and Ireland in the preliminaries, Mortaza knows the hard work now begins in a group that includes India, Australia and New Zealand.

“In that group you can’t make any mistakes, you have to be up to the mark everywhere,” said the veteran bowler.

Fans in Bangladesh held impromptu street parties earlier this month when Bangladesh clinched a five-wicket win over Pakistan in Dhaka, sealing a place in the final of the Asia Cup which they lost to India.

The matches between Pakistan and Bangladesh have an extra edge to them due to a common history before a brutal 1971 war of separation.

Mashrafe Mortaza’s side can expect strong support from their fellow Bengalis in Kolkata, the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal.

But Afridi has been making his own overtures towards the locals by claiming his team has received more “love” from fans in India than back home, comments that incensed the fans back home.

Teams

Bangladesh (from): Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Shakib Al Hasan, Abu Hider, Al-Amin Hossain, Arafat Sunny, Mahmudullah, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Soumya Sarkar, Tamim Iqbal, Taskin Ahmed

Pakistan (from): Shahid Afridi (captain), Anwar Ali, Imad Wasim, Khalid Latif, Khurram Manzoor, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Sami, Sarfraz Ahmed, Shoaib Malik, Sharjeel Khan, Umar Akmal, Wahab Riaz