Bangladesh won the toss and chose to bat first against Australia in the ICC champions trophy 2017 at Kennington Oval, London.
Mashrafe: We'd like to bat first. It looks like a very good wicket to bat on and should slow up a bit later on; so a pretty straightforward decision to bat first. One change - Mehedi Hasan comes in for Mosaddek. We felt we were a bowler short despite scoring 305 the last time. We have an exciting spinner coming in and hopefully he'd do the job for us. We are looking to bat first, score big and then defend the total. The Australia match (2005) was a long time ago but we'll look to take confidence from that. We do not have much of an option today, it is a do or die match for us.
Smith: We would've had a bat as well. A bit overcast and it would be nice if we can get the ball swinging which it hasn't so far. A used wicket this so we thought it should take some spin. Hence Zampa comes in for Hastings. We were a bit off the other day and have some class bowlers with us who can turn it on for us. We usually play well in these high pressure games. Every game is a must win game for us from now and we should go well.
Bangladesh have won the toss and have opted to bat
"It is a used pitch (obviously). There are few footmarks on the fuller side which Tahir used well the other day. Rather tectonic plates which is rather surprising for an Oval wicket which is usually white and wholesome. On the other side of the wicket (the Vauxhall end), the footmarks are more towards the back of a length spot. The balls being used look normal but for some reason they haven't been swinging this tournament. The overhead conditions should aid them today. But eventually it might not come down to the pitch, it could be the overhead conditions and the rain that could be the determining factor tonight," says Ian Bishop in the official pitch report.
The weather is typically English. Gloomy, grey and with bouts of drizzles expected through the night. "Australia were a bit rusty, a bit lazy" reckons Ricky Ponting. "The wicket looks a bit dry. We saw Tahir get wickets the other day and with the wicket being a second game pitch, Zampa should play today. Historically when you get old and dry wickets in England the seam tends to hold in the surface a little bit. But even if the warm ups are anything to go by we should be in for a big score. The Aussies might consider switching the order a bit."
Bangladesh (Playing XI): Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Mehedi Hasan, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain
Australia (Playing XI): David Warner, Aaron Finch, Steven Smith(c), Moises Henriques, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Wade(w), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood