World Cup 2019 – Match 43: PAK vs BAN – Bangladesh Predicted Playing XI

Bangladesh will remember the World Cup 2019 for the way they’ve fought in the tournament. They came close in almost every game that they played. However, some of the results didn’t go their way. The team made some costly mistakes in the games against New Zealand and India that has potentially cost them a knockout place.

Thus, at the end of eight games, they only have three wins and have already been knocked out. Though, for one last time in the tournament, the Tigers will have to walk out onto the field as they are set to face Pakistan. There are some injury concerns but those wouldn’t matter anyway as the side will look to give opportunities to some of the other players in this dead rubber.

Here is the Predicted Playing XI for Bangladesh

Openers (Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar)

Tamim Iqbal has had a highly inconsistent tournament. While he got off to good starts on most of the occasions, the senior cricketer made it count only on a few instances. For all the teams that have succeeded in the tournament, their openers have been terrific and have provided their teams with great starts on most of the occasion. However, that hasn’t been the case for Bangladesh.

Even Soumya Sarkar seemed to have really struggled and there aren’t many stand-out performances. This has resulted in the middle order being exposed quite early in the game. Hence, the poor opening performances could be one of the major reasons for Bangladesh’s downfall in the World Cup 2019.

Middle Order (Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Liton Das, Sabbir Rahman)

Shakib Al Hasan has done everything possible in his capacity in the tournament. However, individual performances can only win you a few games of cricket and not big tournaments. The veteran all-rounder scored 542 runs thus far in 8 games and is amongst the leading run-scorers. His four half-centuries, two centuries and 11 wickets, however, haven’t been able to change Bangladesh’s fortunes.

Mushfiqur Rahim scored 24 runs in the last game against India. The wicket-keeper batsman has looked in great touch. However, he has been a victim of soft dismissals throughout the tournament. A few casual shots haven’t helped his cause and has got to be more calculated and careful. Liton Das, after the 94 against Windies, hasn’t got any big runs. Facing the Pakistan pacers won’t be easy and he’s got to be at the top of his game. Sabbir Rahman will surely hold onto his spot and is also handy with his leg-spinners.

All Rounders (Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mehidy Hasan)

While Mosaddek Hossain is decent with the ball, his primary role is to score some quick runs towards the end of the innings for his team. He hasn’t been able to do that at all times leading to disappointment. However, Bangladesh hasn’t got many alternatives to explore. With Mahmudullah Riyad injuring his calf, he might continue to sit out of the playing eleven.

Mohammad Saifuddin played an absolute blinder in the last match. Although he was expensive with the ball, he gave India a massive scare while batting. In just 38 balls, he scored 51 runs and was great. Bangladesh will hope that this confidence will rub off on his performance in the next game. Mehidy Hasan might make it back into the eleven considering the fact that there are a lot of left-handers in the opposition’s batting line-up.

Bowlers (Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Mustafizur Rahman)

As a captain, it is important for any player to lead and inspire his troops from the front. Mashrafe Mortaza, unfortunately, hasn’t been able to do that so far. His performances in the tournament have nothing been less than a huge disappointment and is all geared up to play what could potentially be his final World Cup game.

Mustafizur Rahman bowled a great spell in the last match. He finished with a five-wicket haul but his efforts weren’t really enough. The left-arm pacer dismissed the likes of Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, MS Dhoni, Dinesh Karthik which should be a massive boost. Bangladesh will hope for yet another similar performance from him.