Bangladesh to bat first in Shakib’s 100th T20I

Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan won the toss and chose to bat first as the Tigers begin their Asia Cup campaign against Afghanistan at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in UAE today.

Shakib is going to play his 100th T20I match today and all eyes will be on the star all-rounder as whether he can lead from the front to bring Bangladesh back in rhythm.

The Tigers will be wary of the threat posed by a high-flying Afghan side that crushed Sri Lanka by eight wickets in their opening fixture on Saturday.

Opening batter Naim Sheikh, pacer Taskin Ahmed, and all-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin feature in the Tigers' playing eleven while the Afghans are fielding an unchanged side. 

Playing XI:

Bangladesh: Anamul Haque, Naim Sheikh, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Afif Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman

Afghanistan: Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Karim Janat, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Azmatullah Omarzai, Naveen Ul Haque, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaque Farooqi