AFGHANISTAN V BANGLADESH IN INDIA, 2018 Afghanistan include Hazratullah Zazai for Bangladesh T20Is by Cricbuzz Staff • Published on Afghanistan take on Bangladesh in a three-match T20I series in Dehradun © AFP Afghanistan batsman Hazratullah Zazai earned a late recall to the national side for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, starting Sunday (June 3) in Dehradun, following a special recommendation by the ACB selection committee. The 20-year-old opener, who played his only T20I in UAE in 2016, was added to the home team's existing 16-member squad after he notched up 69 runs in the pre-series warm-up match against the tourists. Afghanistan were set a 146-run target, which they chased down with 16 balls and eight wickets to spare after the opener's half-century knock, on Friday. Afghanistan are scheduled to play three T20Is against Bangladesh at their second adopted home ground in India. This will also be the first international match for Dehradun's newly inaugurated Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium. Later in the month, Afghanistan make their Test debut against India in Bengaluru in a one-off game starting June 14. Updated squad: Asghar Stanikzai (c), Mohammad Shahzad, Najeeb Tarakai, Usman Ghani, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shenwari, Shafiqullah Shafiq, Darwish Rasooli, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Shapoor Zadran, Aftab Alam and Hazratullah Zazai. © Cricbuzz TAGS RELATED STORIES<doc-sep>Afghanistan take on Bangladesh in a three-match T20I series that started in Dehradun on Sunday, dividing their focus ahead of the historic Test debut against India in two weeks' time. The spin duo of Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi took five wickets between them to ensure Afghanistan comfortably won the first T20 game against Bangladesh in Dehradun on Sunday. Rashid and Nabi took those five wickets for 34 runs in seven overs. While Rashid picked up 3/13 in his three overs, Nabi took 2/21 in his four-over spell that had Bangladesh reeling and getting eventually bowled out for 122 chasing 168 runs. While the dates of the Afghanistan's inaugural Test against India was announced back in January, the series against Bangladesh at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun was only confirmed last month. The scheduling has left Afghanistan with no choice other than to have joint preparations for the Test and T20s. The teams for contrasting formats have been training in batches with the five-day squad training in the morning and the T20 lot in the evening. Only five players - captain Asghar Stanikzai, Mohammad Shahzad, Rashid Khan, Mujeed Zadran and Mohammad Nabi -- figure in both the squads. Coach Phil Simmons said he would have liked more practice games ahead of the India challenge but with modern-day scheduling, he has to get the best out of what he has. "It has been difficult with the T20 and Test squads training at the same time. But it is getting a bit easier as we are coming up to the game. That is how tours are planned now. You usually have Test matches first and then limited over series or vice versa. We just have to work around that," said Simmons, who has been working hard with both the squads ever since they arrived at their second' home ground in the last week of May. Afghanistan were earlier training in the heat of Greater Noida and therefore the players are much more comfortable in the conditions in Dehradun, including the stadium which became India's 51st international venue on Sunday. However, the tight security cover has made it almost impossible for them to explore the Uttarakhand capital. The fact that they are training while fasting in the holy month of Ramzan has made the players' task all the more challenging. Though eighth-placed Afghanistan are ahead of Bangladesh in the rankings, there is not much separating the two teams. They have faced each other in the shortest format only once prior to this series and that was back in the 2014 World T20 where Bangladesh beat Afghanistan by nine wickets. The team from the war-torn nation has come a long way since that tournament and is now capable of surprising even the top teams in the shorter formats. While star spinner Rashid Khan will hold the key for Afghanistan, Bangladesh will rely heavily on their inspirational skipper Shakib Al Hasan. Bangladesh have been slowly getting into the groove. They are in India without their lead pacer Mustafizur Rahman, who had to pull-out last minute due to the injury he suffered in the IPL. The ground is in the outskirts of the city but the prospect of a first-ever international game in the state has created a buzz. A decent crowd is expected to turn up at the 25,000 capacity stadium for all the three matches to be played under lights. When will the three T20Is between Afghanistan and Bangladesh be played? The matches will be played on June 3, June 5 and June 7, 2018. At what time will the three T20Is between Afghanistan and Bangladesh start? All three matches will start at 8 pm IST. Where will the three T20Is between Afghanistan and Bangladesh be played? All three matches will be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun. On which TV channels in India can one watch the three T20Is between Afghanistan and Bangladesh? All three matches can be viewed on Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3, Star Sports 1 HD, and Star Sports 3 HD. Where in India can one live stream the three T20Is between Afghanistan and Bangladesh? All three matches can be live streamed on Hotstar.com Here are the probable XIs of both teams Afghanistan: Mohammad Shahzad (wk), Asghar Stanikzai (capt), Najeeb Tarakai, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Shafiqullah, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Aftab Alam, Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Mahmudullah, Sabbir Rahman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan, Abu Hider, Rubel Hossain, Nazmul Islam. (Inputs from PTI)<doc-sep>Most of the cricket viewing public were completely captivated by the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the past two months or so. The tournament which brings together the best talents from across the globe proved to be an entertaining, fun and enjoyable experience. Now it’s time for international cricket to take center stage. India will take part in the historic first test match of Afghanistan. It has been an exhilarating past twelve months for the Afghanistan side. Their elevation to test status is a huge achievement for their country’s growth as a cricket team. Afghanistan also made it to the ICC World Cup 2019 by beating West Indies in the world cup qualifiers tournament finals. They are heading into this series against Bangladesh high on confidence. In their adopted home ground at Dehradun, Bangladesh will be tested for sure. They can ‘not take this series for granted, although they also come into this T20I series after their heroics in the Niddahas trophy where they were denied the trophy courtesy of Dinesh Karthik’s brilliance. Two exciting teams will face off in a three-match T20I series starting June 3rd, 2018. Here’s looking at 5 players to look forward to: Shakib Al Hasan The Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan is among the finest all-rounders going around in all forms of the game currently, especially in T20’s. Lots will ride on his skill and experience when his team takes on Afghanistan. He rotates his bowlers skillfully and was able to contribute well personally in Bangladesh’s successful Niddahas trophy campaign. With their main weapon Muztafizur Rahman out of the tournament due to injury, the onus on finding the right combination and managing his resources wisely will be the key. Another challenge would be for him not to get too complacent considering this short series is played against a team ranked below them. Shakib Al Hasan will have some valuable information to share about Afghanistan’s biggest star Rashid Khan as they shared the dressing room for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the IPL. More than 1000 runs in 63 T20I’s along with 75 wickets at a fantastic economy rate of 6.98 exemplifies his strength and importance as a T20 player. Bangladesh will surely hope he performs well in this series. 1 / 5 NEXT<doc-sep>
AFGHANISTAN V BANGLADESH, T20I SERIES Mustafizur's absence a chance for someone else to shine, reckons Shakib by Atif Azam • Last updated on Shakib will lead Bangladesh in the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. © Getty Bangladesh's T20I skipper Shakib al Hasan said that his team will certainly miss the services of pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman and urged others to take up the responsibility in the series against Afghanistan. Bangladesh is scheduled to play three Twenty20 Internationals against Afghanistan at Rajiv Gandhi Stadiu in Dehradhun, on June 3, 5 and 7. While Bangladesh have reached India, Shakib left Dhaka on Thursday (May 31) after an extended break to recuperate after the Indian Premier League, where he played for the runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad. The unexpected absence of Mustafizur due to his toe injury came as a big blow for Bangladesh who were relying on him to lead the pace bowling department, only to learn about his unavailability at the last moment. What added to the team's agony was that the board did not name his replacement immediately and instead waited for the team management to let them know about their requirements after seeing the conditions. Pacer Abul Hassan inclusion as replacement of Mustafiz only suggest there will be enough carry for the pace bowlers to exploit against Afghanistan in the upcoming series. "Certainly there will be some problem [as he is not available]," Shakib told reporters ahead of joining the squad. "He is our best T20 bowler and so naturally it becomes difficult for us. At the same time it opens up an opportunity for someone and I am looking forward to see someone grab that with both hands," he added. Shakib said that they will go into the series taking one game at a time, while acknowledging that the series opener will set the tone. Afghanistan are ranked eighth in the ICC T20 rankings while Bangladesh are two places behind them, on the tenth spot. "We will take it match by match'' said Shakib. "The first match is always important as it helps to gather the momentum. If we can win the opening game then the next two games become much more easy," he concluded. © Cricbuzz TAGS RELATED STORIES