Bangladesh’s tour of South Africa is set to begin from 28th September as Bangladesh play two Tests, three ODI’s and two T20I’s. The tour starts with a Test match at the Senwes Park in Potchefstroom. Bangladesh is riding high on the recent success that they have tasted in Tests and One Day International format. The last time these two teams met in a Test match was when South Africa travelled to Bangladesh in 2015. The series was drawn as rain interrupted play in the two-match series.
Let’s have a look at some of the key player battles for the series.
Kagiso Rabada vs Tamim Iqbal
Kagiso Rabada has filled the shoes of Dale Steyn in his absence; giving South Africa early breakthroughs and picking up wickets in bulk in every match. Rabada has already taken 81 wickets in just 19 Tests. He has been a serious threat to opening batsmen as his ability to swing the ball both ways has created some trouble for the batsmen.
The responsibility to handle the initial burst of swing and fast bowling will be with Tamim Iqbal. Tamim has been one of the mainstays of Bangladeshi batting for a long time now. He has played 50 Tests for Bangladesh and has scored 3826 runs. He is one of the two players who has played a Test in South Africa for Bangladesh. It will be interesting to see how he tackles Rabada’s pace in the series.
Hashim Amla vs Mustafizur Rahman
Hashim Amla is touted as one of the modern batting greats, and he has been at the helm of South African cricket for over a decade now. He is the only batsman from both the teams who have played 100 Tests. He has played 107 Tests and has an incredible average of 49. He has scored 8281 runs in Test cricket.
Mustafizur Rahman also known as the “Fizz” among his fans has earned praises from cricket pundits all around the world. His ability to swing the new ball and maintain excellent line and lengths has given batsmen some trouble in the recent time. His speed variations are pretty hard to pick for the batsmen. This will be his first trip to rainbow nation, and he will have the responsibility to get rid of one of the finest batsmen in cricket right.
Faf Du Plessis vs Mehidy Hasan
This series will be a contest between South African Batsmen and Bangladeshi bowlers. If the Bangladeshi bowlers manage to have the better of South African batsmen, then they might have an outside chance of upsetting one of the toughest team to beat at home. Faf Du Plessis will lead the South African team, and he also has the responsibility to stabilise the African batting in the middle order. After a poor tour of England, he will be looking forward to this series to get back his lost form.
Mehidy Hasan has impressed everyone with his conservative style of spin bowling which has caused some trouble for the batsmen. However, he has played most of his international cricket at home, and it will be interesting to see how performs on overseas tours where the pitches do not support spin bowling.