The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has confirmed that Afghanistan will face Bangladesh in a three-match One Day International (ODI) series in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from November 6 to November 11, 2024.
The matches will be crucial for both teams as they prepare for the ICC Champions Trophy, set to take place in Pakistan in February 2025. This ODI series was initially part of a larger all-format tour, which included T20Is and Tests, as outlined in Afghanistan’s Future Tour Program (FTP).
The tour was initially scheduled for July-August 2024 but was postponed due to extreme heat in the UAE and India, where Afghanistan usually hosts its home series. After extensive discussions between the Afghanistan and Bangladesh cricket boards, it was decided to proceed with just the ODI leg of the tour. The three-match series will begin on November 6, with the second and third ODIs taking place on November 9 and 11, respectively. While the exact venues in the UAE are still to be confirmed, these matches are expected to be crucial for both teams as they prepare for the upcoming ICC tournaments.
Bangladesh initially declined to tour in the summer due to the high temperatures, which resulted in the postponement of the full series. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming ODI series, especially given the limited number of ODIs for the team this year. BCB President Faruque Ahmed confirmed that the board is eager for these matches as part of their Champions Trophy preparation, noting that Bangladesh has played only three ODIs in 2024, with three additional matches scheduled against the West Indies later in the year.
Afghanistan will head into the series with considerable momentum, having recently achieved a historic 2-1 ODI series victory over South Africa. After the Bangladesh series, Afghanistan is scheduled to tour Zimbabwe for an all-format series. In contrast, Bangladesh’s most recent ODI series was at home against Sri Lanka, which they won 2-1. Historically, Bangladesh has the upper hand over Afghanistan in ODIs, winning 10 out of their 16 encounters.
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