Bangladesh were sent in to bat first after UAE captain Mohammad Waseem won the toss in the opening T20 of the two-match series at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
In a surprising move, Parvez Hossain Emon opened the innings alongside Tanzid Hasan Tamim, leaving out regular starters Najmul Hossain Shanto and Soumya Sarkar from the playing XI. Leg-spinner Rishad Hossain and pacer Nahid Rana also missed out, primarily due to rest after facing delays at the airport.
Bangladesh captain Liton Das expressed confidence in setting a high total, stating, “The wicket looks excellent. We must post a big score. I believe the pitch might slow down a bit in the second innings.”
UAE skipper Waseem, meanwhile, said his team would aim to restrict Bangladesh to a manageable score. “We want to keep them within 140-150. We know this pitch well and are used to playing on it,” he said.
Playing XIs:
Bangladesh : Parvez Hossain Emon, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Liton Das (captain), Towhid Hridoy, Zakir Ali, Shamim Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Tanvir Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib.
UAE : Mohammad Waseem (captain), Zohaib Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Rahul Chopra, Asif Khan, Dhruv Parashar, Sanchit Sharma, Mohammad Zohaib, Matiullah Khan, Haider Ali, Mohammad Jawadullah.
