After an overdose of T20Is in UAE, ODI cricket makes a welcome return as Afghanistan are set to host Bangladesh in a 3-match ODI series. The venue has also shifted as we have shifted from Sharjah to Abu Dhabi for this 3-match series. The first of those ODIs takes place on Wednesday 8th October 2025 with the match set to start at 4 PM Local Time and 5:30 PM IST. There is change of personnell in both sides with new captains leading them compared to the T20Is.
Afghanistan in the ODI format will be led by Hashmatullah Shahidi while Bangladesh will be led by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. This is an important series as points are up for grabs for automatic qualification for the World Cup 2027 is concerned. Bangladesh are currently in 10th place below West Indies and will need points for automatic qualification as Zimbabwe who are below them on 11th will automatically qualify as host nation. Afghanistan slightly better off in 7th place but would like to win as well to climb upwards in the points table.
Overview
After being whitewashed 0-3 in the T20I series in Sharjah, Afghanistan will be eager to bounce back as they shift base to Abu Dhabi for a three-match ODI series against Bangladesh. The first of those ODIs is set to take place later today in Abu Dhabi. ODIs have become increasingly rare in the current cricketing landscape, with the focus largely on T20Is ahead of next year’s World Cup, and on Tests due to the ongoing World Test Championship.
For this series, Afghanistan will welcome back several ODI specialists, including their skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi, bolstering their squad with much-needed experience and stability in the longer white-ball format. They’ll be especially keen to turn things around after being completely outplayed by Bangladesh in Sharjah, where they failed to register a single win across the three T20Is.
Afghanistan have been forced to make a late change to their squad, with Mohammad Saleem ruled out due to groin injury. He has been replaced by Bilal Sami, who was initially named among the reserves for this series. The rest of the Afghanistan squad largely remains unchanged from the T20I series. However, there are a few fresh inclusions in Ikram Alikhil, Nangeyalia Kharote, and Allah Ghazanfar come into the side.
Notably, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Gulbadin Naib, and Karim Janat have all been left out of the white-ball set-up following their underwhelming performances in the Asia Cup.
For Bangladesh, Mehidy Hasan Miraz will lead the ODI side after being left out of the T20I squads for both the Asia Cup and the recently concluded bilateral series against Afghanistan. Litton Das, who is yet to recover from his side strain injury that kept him out of T20Is, does not feature in the squad. Saif Hassan who has been in red-hot form in the T20 format in the recent past is likely to make his debut in ODIs on Wednesday.
In the pace department, Nahid Rana joins an already strong line-up featuring Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman. Hasan Mahmud and Tanzim Hasan Sakib are also part of the squad, as Bangladesh opted for a pace-heavy attack against Afghanistan. In the spin department, Rishad Hossain will partner with skipper Mehidy Hasan Miraz to provide the slow bowling options.
Nurul Hasan brings valuable experience to the middle order alongside former captain Najmul Hossain Shanto. Towhid Hridoy did not feature in any of the three T20Is for Bangladesh in the recent series against Afghanistan. White there has been no official confirmation on his status, if fit, he is expected to slot straight into the playing XI.
Both teams appear to be evenly matched on paper. But who will draw first blood remains to be seen. The stage is set for an epic battle later this evening in Abu Dhabi.
Head-To-Head
These two teams have met each other on 19 occasions in ODIs with Afghanistan winning 8 of them and Bangladesh winning the remaining 11. In the last 10 encounters, the head-to-head is dead split at 5-5. In November 2024, Afghanistan and Bangladesh met in a 3-match series which Afghanistan won 2-1 including the last match on 11th November which was the last meeting between the two sides.
Pitch and Weather Conditions
The pitch at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi is traditionally balanced in nature offering assistance to both batters and bowlers. Pacers can extract bounce early, while spinners will become influential in the middle overs as the surface tends to slow slightly. Scores of 320+ are considered competitive for the team batting first. It will be interesting to see what the captain does at toss time.
The weather in Abu Dhabi will be hot and humid with a gentle breeze. Conditions will test the players as they are not used to play in these scorching conditions for longer hours. The heat will test them and there is no chance of rain and so we are set to get an uninterrupted game for sure.
Predicted/Probable Playing XIs of both sides.
Afghanistan XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangeliya Kharote, Bashir Ahmad.
Bangladesh XI: Tanzid Hasan, Saif Hassan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz (c), Jaker Ali (wk), Rishad Hossain, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman.
Key Players to watch out for in this clash
Ibrahim Zadran: Ibrahim Zadran is a key player for Afghanistan in the ODI format as he holds the innings together and plays the perfect role of an anchor player. He has immense role to hold the innings together and then accelerate towards the end. He forms a good opening pair with Gurbaz and will be expected to do the lion share of the scoring when Afghanistan are batting.
Rashid Khan: Rashid Khan may not be captain of this 50-over side but he is part of the leadership group and is the lead bowler for Afghanistan. His overs mainly in the middle phase of the game are crucial as he holds the run flow and picks up crucial wickets to dent the opposition. Yes, he is not the same bowler that he was before, but is an integral member of the Afghanistan side and one which cannot be discounted at all.
Saif Hassan: Yet to make his debut in ODIs, Saif Hassan has made a mark in the shortest format of the game. He will be keen to continue that in the 50-over format when he makes his debut on Wednesday. Batting at the top of the order, Saif will be expected to give the team a flying start and then cash in from there. If he gets going, then Afghanistan bowling will be put under pressure and the Rashid Khan factor will be greatly neutralised by Saif.
Taskin Ahmed: The leader of the pace attack Taskin Ahmed leads a pace heavy attack of Bangladesh. He is the spearhead of the attack and will be expected to start well with the new ball. The expectations will be for Taskin to provide breakthroughs in the powerplay and then chip away in the middle overs and also do a job in the death as well. He is an integral member of the side as without his contribution, Bangladesh tends to struggle a bit. All eyes will be on Taskin to do well in this ODI.
Key Stats/Records to look forward to in this clash.
- Rahmat Shah is 25 runs away from completing the 4000 run mark in ODIs.
- Hashmatullah Shahidi is 65 runs away from completing the 2500-run mark in his ODI career.
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz will play his 50th ODI match for Afghanistan.
- Rashid Khan is just one wicket away from completing 200 ODI wickets in his career.
Predicted/Possible Outcome of the Match
It’s tough to predict a winner as both teams are evenly matched at this stage. Afghanistan won the last bilateral series against Bangladesh in November 2024. But looking at current form and momentum, we feel with Bangladesh beating Afghanistan in 3 T20Is and whitewashing them, they will carry that renewed momentum and start as favourites in Abu Dhabi. Having said that, Afghanistan are playing in familiar conditions and will fancy their chances in ODIs. This series can go either ways.
Let’s see how the series unfolds and the match as well later tonight when these two teams lock horns in Abu Dhabi.
Also Read: AFG vs BAN: Bangladesh Completes Whitewash With 6-Wicket Win