Bangladesh were on cloud nine after their terrific performances against Zimbabwe, Pakistan, and India, but they were brought down to earth after their loss to South Africa in the recent T20 series.
They were outplayed in both the T20 matches by the touring South African side, while the ODI and the Test series are yet to be played.
Now the action shifts over to the 50-over format with the first ODI match set to be played at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka on Friday.
The Bangladesh team is aware of the tough task ahead of the ODI series, as South Africa are one of the best ODI teams in the world, with a number of world class players in their ranks.
Players such as Hashim Amla, JP Duminy, David Miller, Imran Tahir have it in them to make life difficult for the hosts.
But the South African team has received a major blow as they are set to miss the services of their influential skipper AB de Villiers, who can change the course of the game in a matter of overs. In his absence, Hashim Amla will lead South Africa in the ODI series.
This piece of news must have come as a huge sigh of relief to the Bangladeshi camp, for it does not need a rocket scientist to tell that the South African team looks less stronger sans De Villiers. But that does not allow any room for Bangladesh to become complacent.
Bangladesh need to be on top of their toes to come anywhere close to winning the series.
The Mashrafe Mortaza-led side is a confident unit, after its recent astounding win in the recent ODI series against India. If players such as Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar among others get their act together, they can create a huge upset in the series.
The South African batsmen might be severely tested by the Bangladesh spinners as well for the Proteas do not have a good track record against spinners and to make things worse for South Africa, Bangladesh possess some top class spinners such as Arafat Sunny, Nasir Hossain and Shakib Al Hasan.
Teams:
Bangladesh - Mashrafe Mortaza (C), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Arafat Sunny, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Litton Das, Jubair Hossain, Anamul Haque, Mahmudullah.
South Africa - Hashim Amla (C), JP Duminy, David Miller,Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw, Chris Morris, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir, Kyle Abott, Wayne Parnell, Ryan McLaren, Farhaan Behardien, Kagiso Rabada, Aaron Phangiso.
1st ODI Schedule
Bangladesh vs South Africa
Date – 10 July, 2015
Venue - Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka
Time – 3pm local time (2:30pm IST, 5 am ET, 10 am BST)
