Bangladesh were sent in to bowl first today by New Zealand in the third T20I, which happens to be a landmark 100th game in the format for Bangladesh captain Mahmudullah Riyad.
The Kiwis made three changes to their starting XI as they look to wrestle Bangladesh's momentum and keep the series alive. Bangladesh though went in with the same playing eleven the previous two matches.
Through this match, Mahmudullah becomes the first Bangladeshi cricketer to play 100 international matches in the shortest format of the game. The next four most experienced players for Bangladesh in the format are prior to this match were: Mushfiqur Rahim (89), Shakib Al Hasan (87), Tamim Iqbal (78) and Soumya Sarkar (61). Only seven cricketers across the world have previously crossed the 100 T20I international landmark.
This match could also witness another Bangladeshi stalwart, Shakib Al Hasan, achieve a milestone by becoming the highest wicket-taker in T20 internationals. With 106 wickets in 86 matches, Shakib stands one wicket away from Sri Lankan legend, who is the highest wicket-taker in the format with 107 international wickets from 84 matches.
Playing XIs
New Zealand: 1 Finn Allen, 2 Rachin Ravindra, 3 Will Young, 4 Tom Latham (capt&wk), 5 Colin de Grandhomme, 6 Henry Nicholls, 7 Tom Blundell, 8 Cole McConchie, 9 Scott Kuggeleijn, 10 Jacob Duffy, 11 Ajaz Patel
Bangladesh: 1 Mohammad Naim, 2 Liton Das, 3 Shakib Al Hasan, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Mahmudullah (capt), 6 Nurul Hasan (wk), 7 Afif Hossain, 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Mohammad Saifuddin, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Nasum Ahmed
