Zimbabwe will play a five match series against Bangladesh, with the first of the games to be held in Dhaka on the 27th of October. Bangladesh will go into the series as favourites after having convincingly beaten the Zimbabweans in their own home.

Zimbabwe began their tour with a game against the Bangladesh Cricket Board XI and were soundly beaten with more than five overs to spare. However, the game would have also given the Zimbabweans some insight into what to expect from the pitch and that would probably be of help in the first game that will be played on Tuesday.

Spin will play a huge role in the series, and the Zimbabwean side will know this before hand. They will look to take positives out of the 4-1 series win against Kenya, but will understand that the Kenyan bowling was half as strong as the Bangladeshis. And that, at home!

Prosper Utseya is the one spinner who has done well for Zimbabwe, and could walk into any ODI team thanks to his economy, but apart from him, the tourists could struggle with their bowling. Luckily for them, Heath Streak is back into the Zimbabwean set-up and has accepted a coaching role within the side, which means that he will be there to use up his experience and pass it on to his wards. The good thing about their warm-up game also was that the opening bowlers had done well to get rid of the top-order with Justice Chibhabha taking three wickets.

On the other hand, their batsmen are a decent lot and the inclusion of Tatenda Taibu will add depth to their middle order. Taibu had been out of the side for some time, due to a ten-match ban for assaulting the general manager of the cricket board. ODI top-scorer Charles Coventry would be looked up to as well, but most of all, Hamilton Masakadza would be the batsman to watch out for.

Bangladesh will rely on its left-arm spinning fortress of Shakib al Hasan, Enamul Haque Junior and Abdur Razzaq, with guys like Mahmudullah to support. Mohammad Ashraful's batting looks to be getting more consistent and he will play a vital role in the middle order, whereas the captain Shakib-al Hasan, who will lead the side in place of the injured Mashrafe Mortaza will also don the twin duties of batting and bowling.

It is difficult to see Zimbabwe win the first game, especially after having to adjust to the conditions there.

Tag :- Bangladesh   Bangladesh Cricket Board   Hamilton Masakadza   Heath Streak   Mashrafe Mortaza   Shakib al Hasan   Tatenda Taibu   Zimbabwe