ISLAMABAD: Pakistan skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi elected to field first after winning the toss against Bangladesh on Sunday, as the two sides lock horns in Mirpur for the third and final One Day International match of the series.
Pakistan and Bangladesh are tied 1-1 in the three-match series after Afridi’s men thrashed the hosts by 128 runs on Friday. Earlier, Bangladesh defeated Pakistan by eight wickets in the first match of the series.
“Pakistan have won the toss and elected to field first,” the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement.
Pakistan have made two changes to the playing XI, with Shamyl Hussain and Talat Hussain out with injuries. In their place, Afridi has included Ghazi Ghori and Saad Masood.
Earlier, Pakistan batter Salman Ali Agha was officially reprimanded for breaching the International Cricket Council’s code of conduct on Saturday after he threw his gloves and helmet during the second ODI against Bangladesh in Dhaka.
The incident occurred in the 39th over of Pakistan’s innings on Friday when Agha, after being run out, threw his batting gloves and helmet to the ground in what match officials described as an inappropriate manner.
Agha was furious after his team-mate Mohammad Rizwan hit the ball back toward him at the non-striker’s end off Mehidy Hasan Miraz’s bowling and the pair tangled.
Out of his ground, Agha attempted to pick the ball up to give it to Mehidy, only for the Bangladesh captain to get it first and hit the stumps.
The ICC said on Saturday that Agha committed a Level 1 offense under Article 2.2 of its code, which relates to the abuse of cricket equipment or ground fixtures during an international match.
The run-out incident divided cricket fans around the world, with some saying it was not in line with the “spirit of cricket.”
Others, however, blamed the Pakistani T20 skipper for stepping outside his crease and helping the bowler pick up the ball when it wasn’t his job to do so.
Playing XI:
1 Saif Hassan, 2 Tanzid Hasan, 3 Towhid Hridoy, 4 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 5 Litton Das (wicketkeeper), 6 Afif Hossain, 7 Mehidy Hasan Miraz (captain), 8 Rishad Hossain, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Nahid Rana, 11 Mustafizur Rahman
Pakistan: 1 Sahibzada Farhan, 2 Maaz Sadaqat, 3 Ghazi Ghori, 4 Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), 5 Salman Agha, 6 Abdul Samad, 7 Saad Masood, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), 10 Abrar Ahmed, 11 Haris Rauf
