New Zealand opt to bat against Bangladesh

New Zealand skipper Tom Latham won the toss and opted to bat first against Bangladesh in the penultimate Twenty20 International match in Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka on Wednesday.

The visitors made make two changes - Hamish Bennett and Blair Tickner return in place of Jacob Duffy and Scott Kuggeleijn.

The host are playing with an unchanged team once again.

“I think we have a good combination, but it is important to read the pitches on the day and adapting your game according to the surface,” Ashwell Prince, Bangladesh’s batting coach, told newspersons Tuesday after a training session at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

“There were good run chases against Zimbabwe and Australia. You need to have a combination of batsmen in the team. You have guys who can rotate the strike, can hit boundaries, and then you have a group of guys at the end of the innings, who can chase 9-10 runs in an over when necessary and pitches are conducive,” Prince added.

Bangladesh won the first two matches by seven wickets and four runs respectively, while New Zealand secured a 52-run win in the third game.

The hosts will be looking to seal the series while the visitors will be playing to level the series in a bid to turn the last match a series decider.

Mohammad Naim, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah (c), Nurul Hasan (wk), Afif Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman and Nasum Ahmed

Rachin Ravindra, Finn Allen, Will Young, Tom Latham (c & wk), Colin de Grandhomme, Henry Nicholls, Tom Blundell, Cole McConchie, Ajaz Patel, Blair Tickner and Hamish Bennett