Familiar environment, but challenge steep

Bangladesh team reached Chennai ahead of their third World Cup game against New Zealand yesterday.

Shakib Al Hasan and his troops checked into the ITC Grand Chola hotel in Chennai and are scheduled to practise at the MA Chidambaram Stadium from 6:00pm (local time) under lights today.

The Tigers, after a promising start to their World Cup campaign with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan in Dharamshala, went on to face a crushing 137-run defeat to the defending champions England at the same venue on Tuesday.

The change in venue might bring fortune for Bangladesh who have travelled all the way from the northwestern region of India to the southern part of the country where the hot and sunny conditions are expected to suit the Tigers.

However, there are still a few areas that the Tigers would need to work on after their heavy defeat to England. The concerns regarding the top order, especially the opening position, still persist and need to be sorted out soon.

With no backup opener in the squad, head coach Chandika Hathurusingha will need to find a way out to settle things after young opener Tanzid Hasan Tamim failed in both games. However, the team management will be relieved to see Liton Das returning to form -- the right-hander made 76 off 66 balls against England as his batting was the only positive thing for the Tigers in the game.

Apart from the batting department, the Tigers will also hope for their fast bowling unit, which has shown great improvement in the last two years or so, to get into the groove after the likes of Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, and Mustafizur Rahman remained ordinary in both the games.

It will be interesting to see whether the Tigers think tank come up with yet another different strategy against a high-flying New Zealand, who will be eying their third consecutive victory in the flagship event when they take on Bangladesh on October 13.

In the first game that was hosted in Chennai, spinners ruled the roost when India began the World Cup with a convincing six-wicket win against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

After being sent to bat, Australia were bundled out for just 199 with the spin trio of Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravichandran Ashwin combining to take six wickets for 104 runs in 30 overs to set up the victory.

The Chepauk Stadium is expected to provide assistance and help the Bangladesh spinners Shakib, Mahedi Hasan, and Mehedi Hasan Miraz get an edge but the one thing that they need to be wary of is the fact that New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson, an excellent player of spin, is highly likely to make his first appearance in the World Cup against the Tigers.

The player of the tournament in the previous edition of the World Cup, Williamson is recovering fast after he suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee during the Indian Premier League earlier this year.

It will be Bangladesh's second-ever ODI in Chennai since the Tigers lost to Kenya by 28 runs back in 1988 during a triangular series involving hosts India at this venue.