Bangladesh will be looking to continue their recent resurgence in T20 internationals as they host Pakistan in a three-match series beginning on 20 July at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.
The series, played under the lights in Dhaka’s mid-monsoon season, pits two teams on contrasting trajectories: a confident Bangladesh side buoyed by a rare away triumph, and a formidable yet transitional Pakistan outfit aiming to reaffirm their supremacy.
Pakistan have long held the upper hand in this contest winning 19 of the 22 T20Is played between the two sides. Their most recent meeting was a one-sided 3–0 sweep at home in May, capped off by Mohammad Haris’s historic century, the first by a Pakistani non-opener in T20Is. It was a ruthless display of power-hitting and control, with Pakistan chasing down targets comfortably in each of the three matches.
But much has changed for Bangladesh since then. The Tigers travelled to Sri Lanka earlier this month and produced a stirring comeback overturning a series deficit to claim a 2–1 win. It marked their first-ever T20I series victory over Sri Lanka and only their second away T20I series triumph in the last five years. For a side that had struggled for consistency in the shortest format, the result came as a timely boost.
Key to Bangladesh’s turnaround was the performance of their top order. Tanzid Hasan Tamim anchored the innings in Colombo with a match-winning 73 not out displaying the kind of maturity that had been lacking in the opening slot. Parvez Hossain Emon showed glimpses of his explosive potential, while Litton Das after a string of low scores finally found some rhythm. The middle order, often criticised for its fragility, stood tall with Towhid Hridoy and Shamim Hossain making valuable contributions.
With the ball, Rishad Hossain’s leg-spin provided crucial breakthroughs, supported ably by Mahedi Hasan’s control. Mustafizur Rahman, meanwhile, led the pace unit with guile and experience picking up wickets at key moments and maintaining pressure in the death overs.
Bangladesh are expected to retain the same XI from the final T20I in Colombo backing the young top order to deliver once more. The Mirpur surface, known for its slow nature, is likely to suit their spin-heavy attack, although a high chance of rain (94% forecast for Sunday) could disrupt proceedings.
Despite the loss of some senior players and the absence of Shadab Khan through injury, Pakistan still arrived with firepower across departments. Mike Hesson, now in charge of Pakistan’s white-ball teams, has promised an aggressive brand of cricket, and his team’s recent record backs it up. They have won their last three T20Is, all against Bangladesh, in commanding fashion.
Their top order is built for destruction Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, and Mohammad Haris are all capable of taking the game away in the powerplay. Khushdil Shah and Sahibzada Farhan provide finishing firepower, while Faheem Ashraf adds depth with both bat and ball.
In the absence of Shadab, Pakistan will look to Khushdil’s left-arm spin and Faheem’s experience to maintain balance. Abrar Ahmed and Abbas Afridi offer variation in the bowling attack, while several players bring valuable local knowledge from the Bangladesh Premier League. Haris, Khushdil, Faheem, Abrar, and Abbas have all featured in recent BPL seasons with Khushdil playing 12 matches at Mirpur alone.
This series marks only the third instance of T20Is being played in Bangladesh in the month of July the previous occasions being in 2015 and 2023. Mirpur in July can be a tricky venue; the average first-innings score in night matches in the BPL hovers around 150, but T20Is have historically produced lower totals near 125. For Bangladesh, who tend to thrive on these slower tracks, this could work in their favour provided the weather allows for a full contest.
The first T20I on 20 July will be followed by the second and third matches on 22 and 24 July respectively, all at the same venue. With the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka scheduled for early 2026, both teams will treat this series as a testing ground for younger players and team combinations.
Although the overall head-to-head record favours Pakistan heavily, Bangladesh have a strong home record at Mirpur including two of their three T20I victories against Pakistan. The most recent win came in 2016 during the Asia Cup. Since then, the hosts have struggled to match Pakistan’s batting depth and bowling firepower, but their performance in Sri Lanka has added new hope.