Bangladesh will host Zimbabwe in the third T20 of the four-match series at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna on Wednesday.
The hosts will look to seal yet another limited-overs series at home. The Bangla Tigers have been invincible at home, not having lost a limited-over series since February 2014.
Bangladesh have managed to win the first two T20 internationals withouth difficulty. Sabbir Rahman's all-round show in the second T20 helped the hosts register a comfortable victory over the hapless ZImbabwe.
"The start matters a lot in T20s. I can finish well if I start well. How I face the first six balls depends on the match situation. Whatever I need — a four, a six or even a single — I always try to start well so I can make up later on," Rahman told reporters ahead of the third T20 on Tuesday.
Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza will be without the services of his star batsman Musfiqur Rahim and wonder-bowler Mustafizur Rahman. Both players sustained injuries during this series earlier. Taskin Ahmed and Mosaddek Hossain have replaced them in the squad.
Mortaza, who is in search of the right combination ahead of the Asia Cup T20 and the ICC World T20 2016, is looking to develop his side's game. Rotating the strike is one aspect he is asking his batsmen to focus on, as it helps keep the scoreboard ticking.
"In T20 cricket, it is difficult to play a perfect match," Mortaza said. "There are times when singles don't come and you have to hit boundaries to cover the score. But if you can take as many singles as possible, it is good, especially when the odd boundary is already coming. That's an area we are focusing on."
Another series loss for Zimbabwe will raise a lot of questions ahead of the ICC World T20 2016. Batting consultant Marvan Attapatu is aware that beating Bangladesh in their bacakyard will require extraordinary effort from his players and that has not happened in this series. Nor did it happen in the series against Afghanistan prior to this.
Zimbabwe will look to avoid yet another series defeat and bounce back as early as they can.
Probable lineups:
Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan, Mosaddek Hossain, Nurul Hasan (wk), Mashrafe Mortaza (C), Muktar Ali, Taskin Ahmed, Abu Hider.
Zimbabwe: Vusi Sibanda, Hamilton Masakadza, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams, Malcolm Waller, Elton Chigumbura (C), Richmond Mutumbami (wk), Luke Jongwe, Graeme Cremer, Wellington Masakadza, Taurai Muzarabani.
Where to watch live:
Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe 3rd T20 is scheduled for a 3pm local time (2:30 pm IST, 9 am GMT & 11 am Zimbabwe Time) start.
India viewers can watch the game on Neo Prime.
Bangladesh fans can watch the 3rd T20 between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe live on Gazi TV. Viewers can also stream the match live on GeoSuper.
Cricket fans in the US can catch the action of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe live on Willow TV, while Willow TV Online will provide the live stream option.
Audience in the Middle East and North Africa can watch Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe live on OSN Sports 4/HD 4, while the match can be streamed live on OSN Play.
Viewers in Zimbabwe can watch the live action of the 3rd T20 between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe on Ten Sports.
