A win for either side won’t guarantee qualification, but it will at least keep their chances alive.
THE FORM
Of the two teams, New Zealand has shown the better form, but that’s not saying much since it was beaten by 87 runs by England in its last outing. Bangladesh, though, has fared worse and was extremely lucky to get a point from its match against Australia, having been on the back foot throughout the contest only for rain to act as saviour.
The equation for both teams is the same now, both having one point each from two games. They don’t hold their fate in their hands, but they do control part of it, in the sense that they need to win to stay alive. Victory will mean the winner will move to three points, and they must then hope that Australia don’t win against England.
New Zealand has the classy pedigree of Kane Williamson and a good fast bowling attack, while Bangladesh’s batting has looked weak, Tamim Iqbal apart. Where Bangladesh suffers in comparison to New Zealand is in the bowling resources. Its pacers have been steady rather than threatening, and even Mustafizur Rahman has not looked as potent. If it has to make a late play for the semi-final, Bangladesh will need the likes of him and Shakib Al Hasan to step up.
THE CONDITIONS
Cardiff was covered by a blanket of grey on the eve of the match, with some spells of rain too. The forecast is for the clouds to remain on Friday, though there are only two brief showers expected. The drainage at the Cardiff Wales Stadium is very good, so the chances of having a result look reasonable.
The pitch won’t be the same one used for the England v New Zealand encounter, and is not expected to have too much for bowlers, though it might not be a complete belter either.
THE MATCH-UP
MUSTAFIZUR RAHMAN v KANE WILLIAMSON
In his two hits so far, Kane Williamson has scored 100 and 87. He was run out the first time, and in the second, he got a brute of a delivery from Mark Wood that lifted very unexpectedly off a length. In other words, he’s looked impregnable in normal circumstances, and all that while maintaining an overall strike-rate of 95.89.
The one Bangladesh bowler who has the X-factor that can stop someone like Williamson is Mustafizur. He has bowled without luck so far in the tournament, and is still capable of those deadly changes of pace that have fooled the most well-set batsmen.
THE WILDCARDS
New Zealand: Martin Guptill
Guptill has gone two matches now without converting a start. The missed opportunity against England will rankle particularly, because he had done the initial hard work of seeing off fantastic spells from Jake Ball and Wood, but fell just when he looked like he was hitting his stride. Against Bangladesh, he has the best opportunity to redeem that, given that the overall quality of the attack isn’t near the level of Australia and England.
Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan
No one among active cricketers has as great a claim to being their country’s greatest ever cricketer as Shakib. But the man who has done so much to lift Bangladesh to the level where it has qualified for the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 and is ranked sixth in the world, has not come to the party he helped create. He has given up runs at 7.75 in his eight overs, and two visits to the crease have brought him only 39 runs. A must-win clash is the perfect occasion for him to revitalise himself.
WATCH OUT FOR…
Tim Southee has bowled well in both New Zealand’s games but gone under the radar. He was easily the best one on show against England, and had threatened against Australia too. If there is cloud cover and a bit of early nip in the pitch, he could prove to be more than a handful for the Bangladesh batsmen, with his ability to move the ball.
TEAMS
New Zealand: Kane Williamson (capt), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Neil Broom, Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Jeetan Patel, Luke Ronchi (wk), Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor.
Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Imrul Kayes, Mahmudullah, Mehedi Hasan Miraj, Mosaddek Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Sanzamul Islam, Sabbir Rahman, Shafiul Islam, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Tamim Iqbal, Taskin Ahmed.