Dhaka Dynamites take on Rajshahi Kings in the 36th match of the ongoing Bangladesh Premier League season at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka on Saturday, December 2.
Both Dhaka and Rajshahi are left with only two matches each in the group stages and both of them have still not sealed a spot in the playoffs, starting Friday, December 8.
Shakib Al Hasan's Dhaka are currently placed third on the eight-team table with 11 points from 10 matches while Darren Sammy's Rajshahi are fifth, having secured just eight from 10 matches.
Rajshahi need nothing less than a win in Dhaka today as fourth-placed Rangpur Riders have better chances of securing the playoff-berth after having collected 10 points from just nine matches.
Sammy's men have been haunted by their inability to remain consistent in the ongoing season. They have not been able to win two matches on the trot but have an opportunity buck the trend as they are heading into Saturday's match on the back of a comfortable 33-run win over Chittagong Vikings on Wednesday, November 29.
The return of Mustafizur Rahman has served as a big boost to Rajshahi. The young left-arm pacer picked up two wickets during their win against Chittagong.
On the other hand, Dhaka have lost a bit of steam after winning four matches on the trot early in the season. The star-studded team has won only of its last four matches and are in desperate need for momentum as they head towards the business end of the tournament.
Dhaka will also be looking to take confidence from the early-season win over Rajshahi, in which star players Evin Lewis and Shahid Afridi starred.
The group-stage match between Rajshahi and Dhaka starts at 6pm local, 5:30pm IST, 12pm GMT
How to watch the match on TV, online
India: No live coverage
Bangladesh: TV: Gazi TV. Live Streaming: Gazi TV Online
UK: Free Sports
Squads
Dhaka Dynamites
Shakib Al Hasan (c), Kumar Sangakkara, Cameron Delport, Evin Lewis, Kevon Cooper, Rovman Powell, Ronsford Beaton, Sunil Narine, Shahid Afridi, Graeme Cremer, Mohammad Amir, Shaheen Afridi, Mehedi Maruf, Mosaddek Hossain, Abu Hider Rony, Mohammad Shahid, Jahurul Islam, Nadif Chowdhury, Saqlain Sajib, Joe Denly, Akeal Hosein, Khaled Ahmed, Shadman Islam, Noor Hossain, Kieron Pollard
Rajshahi Kings
Mushfiqur Rahim, Lendl Simmons, Darren Sammy (c), Kesrick Williams, Malcolm Waller, James Franklin, Luke Wright, Farhad Reza, Samit Patel, Mohammad Sami, Mominul Haque, Mustafizur Rahman, Zakir Hasan, Nihaduzzaman, Rony Talukdar, Usama Mir, Raza Ali Dar, Hossain Ali, Naeem Islam jnr, Kazi Anik
