3rd ODI: Confident Bangladesh eye historic whitewash against Australia
What's the story
Bangladesh will chase history when they take on Australia in the third and final ODI of the series. The match will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Dhaka on Sunday. Having won the first two games of the series convincingly, Bangladesh are now looking to complete a historic 3-0 series whitewash. The Aussies, meanwhile, will fight for a consolation victory. Here is the match preview.
Details
Pitch report and other details
The expected overcast conditions will assist fast bowlers, particularly with the new ball. However, batters can thrive once they figure out the bounce and pace. Rain and thunderstorms are expected throughout the day, which could bring chasing under DLS into play. Owing to the same, the toss-winning skipper is likely to chase. The match will start at 10:30am IST.
Match recap
Bangladesh won the 2nd ODI by 5 wickets
In the second ODI, Bangladesh overcame some tough situations to win by five wickets. After losing Tanzid Hasan in the first over, Najmul Hossain Shanto (41) and Soumya Sarkar (42) put up a solid partnership of 86 runs for the second wicket. Even when they lost five wickets later on, Tawhid Hridoy (40*) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (22*) held their nerves to guide their team home with 38 runs remaining in the chase of a 192-run target.
Player spotlight
Taskin and Mustafizur's brilliance helped Bangladesh win
Taskin Ahmed also played a key role in the second ODI by picking two wickets in consecutive balls. His efforts helped reduce Bangladesh's target to 192 in the rain-affected game. Mustafizur Rahman was named player-of-the-match for his three wickets during the first powerplay.
Team analysis
Australia's batting and bowling woes
Australia's top-order batting has been inconsistent, making it difficult to assess their form. The middle order has also been disappointing, with Marnus Labuschagne being moved to No. 7 in the previous game. He finally scored a half-century after 14 innings. Xavier Bartlett contributed with the bat in the second ODI as well, scoring his maiden half-century. However, Australia's bowling hasn't been very effective against Bangladesh's aggressive approach.
H2H
Here's the head-to-head record
As per ESPNcricinfo, Bangladesh and Australia have clashed 24 times in ODIs, with the latter winning 20 matches. While one match ended without a result, Bangladesh's only win before this series came in the famous 2005 Cardiff affair. At home, the Tigers have lost six of their eight ODIs against the Aussies. Bangladesh can now script history with a historic whitewash.
XIs
Here are the probable XIs
Bangladesh (Probable XI): Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Litton Das (wk), Towhid Hridoy, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz (c), Tanvir Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Nahid Rana. Australia (Probable XI): Matthew Short, Cooper Connolly, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (c) (wk), Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Matt Renshaw, Xavier Bartlett, Riley Meredith, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa.
Performers
Here are the key performers
Labuschagne and Bartlett scored fifties for the Aussies in the second game. Cameron Green also made a fighting half-century in the series opener. Najmul Hossain Shanto recorded 40-plus scores in each of the first two games of this series. Nahid Rana claimed two four-fers in his last three List A outings. Having claimed 198 wickets at 29.1, Adam Zampa is one of Australia's best-ever spinners in white-ball cricket.
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