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Saif Hassan debuts as Mehidy Hasan Miraz decides to bat first in 1st ODI vs Afghanistan

Aashay Chopade

Mehidy Hasan Miraz at toss (Source:@cricketangon/X.com)Mehidy Hasan Miraz at toss (Source:@cricketangon/X.com)

Bangladesh captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz has won an important toss in the first ODI against Afghanistan and has decided to bat first. Saif Hassan, who did brilliantly in the recently concluded Asia Cup, has been handed his ODI debut, while Nurul Hasan is also set to play ODI cricket after a long gap.

For Afghanistan, it is a fresh start after the disappointing T20I series, and they would hope that a change in format would bring a shift in their fortunes. Afghanistan also have some new players in their line-up with Bashir Ahmad making his debut in ODIs.

BAN vs AFG 1st ODI: Playing XIs

Bangladesh Playing XI: Mehidy Hasan Miraz (c), Tanzid Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Saif Hassan, Nurul Hasan, Jaker Ali (wk), Towhid Hridoy, Taskin Ahmed, Hasan Mahmud, Tanvir Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib

Afghanistan Playing XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Nangeyalia Kharote, Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, Bashir Ahmad

BAN vs AFG: Captain's talk

Mehidy Hasan Miraz (Bangladesh Captain): "We will bat first. The wicket looks really good, and around 280 would be a competitive total on this surface. We played really well in the T20Is and want to keep the momentum going. The boys performed brilliantly and are very excited. This is a very important match for us. We are playing the ODI format after a long time, and we’ll look to carry the same momentum forward. We are going with three fast bowlers, two spinners, and one debutant — Saif."

Hashmatullah Shahidi (Afghanistan Captain): "Honestly, we wanted to bat as well. This is a new pitch. Let's hope that the decision which they took benefits us. The preparations have been really good. Most of our boys were busy playing in the Asia Cup. We came here to Abu Dhabi 10 days ago. Let's hope we get good results.  We are going with 4 spinners and 2 fast bowlers."