Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe, Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 2020, Today Match Prediction 22 Feb 2020

ban vs zim Match Prediction & Analysis

After a horrible tour to Pakistan, Bangladesh will be returning home to host Zimbabwe in all the formats. The series will commence with a solitary Test match at Dhaka.

Bangladesh and Zimbabwe have had a strong rivalry in the past couple of decades and have produced some fascinating contests, especially in limited-overs cricket. In Test matches, Bangladesh has always had the upper hand. Playing at home, Bangladesh will certainly begin as favorites for this Test match. Their spinners are likely to play the biggest role here as the opposition is known to struggle against good spin bowling.

Zimbabwe, meanwhile, didn't fare too greatly on their return to Test cricket - they lost 0-1 to Sri Lanka at home. However, they did fight well in the second Test and managed to eke out a draw. This will be their best hope in the Test against Bangladesh as well.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Bangladesh Preview

Bangladesh struggled with both bat and ball against Pakistan and went on to lose the first Test by an innings and 44 runs. It was a poor effort and has forced the team management to make some changes as they have dropped Mahmudullah, along with Rubel Hossain, Soumya Sarkar and Al-Amin Hossain from that Test. The four have been replaced by Taskin Ahmed, Mehidy Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, and Mustafizur. All the four are useful additions and should play a pivotal role in the match while bolstering the balance.

Yasir Ali and Hasan Mahmud handed their first Test call-ups. Mominul Haque scored 161 runs the last time Bangladesh met Zimbabwe and he can be the main man to watch out for again. Liton Das is another player to watch out for as he can score big in this game. Mehedi and Taijul Islam have been the main spinners for Bangladesh and they are expected to do the bulk of the damage to Zimbabwe on this surface.

Bangladesh Predicted Playing XI:

Mominul Haque (C), Liton Das (WK), Taskin Ahmed, Yasir Ali, Mehedi Hasan, Ebadot Hossain, Tamim Iqbal, Taijul Islam, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mustafizur Rahman

Bangladesh Actual Playing XI:

Nayeem Hasan, Mohammad Mithun, Ebadat Hossain, Mominul Haque, Liton Das, Tamim Iqbal, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed, Mushfiqur Rahim, Saif Hassan, Nazmul Hossain

Zimbabwe Preview

After that series loss against Sri Lanka at home, Zimbabwe will need to put up a much better performance against Bangladesh. They have suffered a big blow as they will be without captain Sean Williams who has to be at home for family reasons. Craig Ervine will be leading the side in his absence and will have a major task on his hands.

Brendan Taylor will obviously have the biggest responsibility in this Test. He has been Zimbabwe's best batsman for years and how he performs in this match will also decide the team's fate. He has 6 Test hundreds to his name and now would be the perfect time to get another one.

Sikandar Raza is another crucial player in this setup who can make a great impact with both bat and ball. It is his presence in the middle-order, though, that will be vital. Raza is a good player of spin and can tackle the Bangladeshi spinners.

Zimbabwe's bowling is inexperienced for these conditions. Donald Tiripano has been good in recent times and the addition of Chris Mpofu will be useful. They don't have any experienced spinner in their ranks and this could hurt them badly.

Zimbabwe Predicted Playing XI:

Brendan Taylor, Regis Chakabva (wk), Timycen Maruma, Craig Ervine (c), Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Sikandar Raza, Carl Mumba, Donald Tiripano, Prince Masvaure, Victor Nyauchi, Chris Mpofu

Zimbabwe Actual Playing XI:

Victor Nyauchi, Craig Ervine, Sikandar Raza, Ainsley Ndlovu, Regis Chakabva, Prince Masvaure, T Maruma, Kevin Kasuza, Donald Tiripano, Charlton Tshuma, Brendan Taylor

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

For Test matches, Bangladesh always ensures that they dish out rank turners for the visiting sides. Expect nothing less at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka. The batsmen will enjoy the first couple of sessions. But after that, spinners and slower bowlers should rule. The weather at Dhaka for the match is expected to be partly cloudy with some showers expected towards the end of the game.

Venue Details

The Shere Bangla National Stadium has been hosting Test matches since 2007. The highest total on the venue is a mammoth 730-6 by Sri Lanka against Bangladesh. The average total batting first here is 343 and it drops down to 189 in the final innings.

Toss: To Bat

The team winning the toss will be batting first as the batting in the final innings here will be a big challenge.