The ongoing Champions Trophy has moved into the business end of the competition. England are the only team in Group A to have qualified so far. New Zealand and Bangladesh, who are set to face each other on Friday, are still in contention, but results need to go their way in the other match between England and Australia as well.
New Zealand and Bangladesh have to get their team combination spot on for this encounter in Cardiff.
Players like Tom Latham and Colin De Grandhomme have not got any chance to feature in the Champions Trophy, and New Zealand may stick to the same team that featured against England.
Though Luke Ronchi failed in their last innings, he is a game-changer, and can play a massive role at the top of the order.
However, some of their players, like Neil Broom and James Neesham, need to contribute more if New Zealand are to beat Bangladesh. All eyes will be on Kane Williamson for the Black Caps in Cardiff as he has been their best player in the Champions Trophy.
Like New Zealand, Bangladesh may not be thinking of tinkering their playing XI for the match despite the fact that some of their players are not in good form.
They will look for Tamim Iqbal to score some big runs on Friday as well. However, others like Imrul Kayes, Soumya Sarkar, who are both wonderful top order players, need to shine against New Zealand.
The problem with Bangladesh has also been the failure of their strike bowler Mustafizur Rahman. He has not been able to scare bowlers with his wicket-taking ability. The left-arm pacer is yet to take a single wicket in the Champions Trophy. Can he change the statistics when his team needs him the most?
Confirmed playing XI
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Luke Ronchi, Kane Williamson (C), Ross Taylor, Neil Broom, Corey Anderson, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Trent Boult.
Bangladesh:Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Mashrafe Mortaza (C), Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman.
