Bangladesh were clear favorites for this series but were defeated in the first match. Shakib Al Hasan wants Bangladesh to win 4-1. But Zimbabwe has arrived full of confidence after knocking over Kenya 4-1 in a one-day series, and on the back of Elton Chigumbura’s superb all-round performance coasted to victory with more than 15 overs to spare. Their strength is in the batting; the return of Tatenda Taibu after a lengthy absence lends solidity of the middle-order, which includes the talented pair of Charles Coventry and Brendan Taylor. Add to that, Hamilton Masakadza, the second highest run-getter in ODIs this year, and Chigumbura, who has hit more ODI sixes in 2009 than everyone but Chris Gayle, and it looks a reliable unit.

The key will be their battle against Bangladesh’s army of spinners, who have been vital in ensuring the home team’s superiority over Zimbabwe in the past few years. Left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak shook them up on Tuesday by taking three in an over but the visitors managed to overcome that to post a comfortable win.

Teams

Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Junaid Siddique, 3 Mohammad Ashraful, 4 Raqibul Hasan, 5 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Naeem Islam, 9 Rubel Hossain/ Shahadat Hossain, 10 Abdur Razzak 11 Dolar Mahmud

Zimbabwe (probable): 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Chamu Chibhabha, 3 Brendan Taylor, 4 Tatenda Taibu (wk), 5 Charles Coventry, 6 Stuart Matsikenyeri, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Prosper Utseya/Malcolm Waller, 9 Graeme Cremer, 10 Ray Price, 11 Kyle Jarvis

Timing

Thursday, October 29
Start time 14.30 local (07.30 GMT)

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