Bangladesh Win Toss and Bat First as Rahmat Shah Leads Afghanistan for the First Time in Abu Dhabi Test

Bangladesh won the toss and chose to bat first in the one-off Test against Afghanistan at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Friday, as both sides opened a five-day contest at a neutral venue already gripped by extreme heat.

The match marks a landmark moment for Afghanistan, who are being led in a Test for the very first time by Rahmat Shah. Afghanistan's captain said he was relishing the responsibility of taking charge in the longest format.

"Yeah, I'm feeling very proud and also try to play good cricket," Rahmat said, acknowledging the challenge posed by a strong Bangladesh side while stressing that Afghanistan would rely on their own discipline and consistency.

"To be honest, they are very strong. We respect them and we believe in our own abilities. We perform, play with discipline, consistency and play normal game," he added, also underlining the importance of Afghanistan's bowlers maintaining consistency and targeting the right areas by bowling stump-to-stump.

Shanto Backs Spinners as Bangladesh Bat First

Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto called correctly at the toss and had no hesitation in batting first on what he described as a dry surface. His side went into the match with a bowling attack built around three spinners and two fast bowlers, a combination chosen to exploit the expected turn later in the game.

"Yeah, obviously, I think we have been playing some great cricket. But as a team we need to be consistent enough and this is another opportunity to show our skill," Shanto said.

Looking ahead to how the pitch would behave, the Bangladesh skipper predicted it would slow down as the match wore on. "Looks dry and I think day two, day three it will start spinning and then the pitch will be little bit slower than normal here," he said.

Pitch Report: Batting-Friendly First, Turning Later

In his pitch report, Farveez Maharoof highlighted the punishing heat in Abu Dhabi, noting temperatures could reach very high levels and test both players and umpires. He described the surface as hard underneath with dry, brown grass, making it ideal for batting over the opening two days before it begins to turn around day three.

Maharoof called Bangladesh's decision to bat first an obvious choice, advising them to bat freely for the first five sessions and aim for more than 450 runs. For Afghanistan, he stressed the importance of using the new ball effectively to take early wickets.

Mehidy Hasan Miraz Ready for All-Round Role

Speaking before play, Mehidy Hasan Miraz said he considers his all-round role at number seven vital and is focused on contributing runs consistently for the team. Playing in Bangladesh's first Test in Abu Dhabi, he made no excuses for the hot weather and backed the conditions to favour spinners.

Miraz also said he cherishes Bangladesh's historic win against Australia in Darwin but is leaving it in the past, carrying that confidence and strong preparation into the new match.

Playing XIs

Afghanistan: Abdul Malik, Sediqullah Atal, Rahmat Shah (c), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Zia-ur-Rehman Akbar, Shahidullah Kamal, Yamin Ahmadzai, Qais Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Ismat Alam.

Bangladesh: Shadman Islam, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Mominul Haque, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nayeem Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Taijul Islam, Ebadot Hossain.

Match officials for the fixture are Ahsan Raza, Allahudien Paleker, Asif Yaqoob, Dave Gilbert and Izatullah Safi, with play scheduled to begin at 07:00 UK time.

Steady Start in the Middle

After the pre-match formalities and the national anthems, Bangladesh openers Tanzid Hasan and Shadman Islam walked out to begin the innings, with Afghanistan's new-ball bowler Yamin Ahmadzai taking the attack alongside Mohammad Saleem Safi.

Shadman got Bangladesh moving with a drive through the covers for a brace off Ahmadzai, while Tanzid found the first boundary of the game when he used the pace of a leg-side delivery from Saleem to tickle the ball through fine leg. Early in the piece the scoreboard also moved via four byes, as a shaping delivery from Saleem beat Shadman's inside edge and raced away past the keeper to fine leg.

Both openers mixed solid defence — blocking full deliveries back to the bowler and leaving balls outside off — with the occasional single as Afghanistan's seamers probed for early breakthroughs on a surface expected to reward patience first and spin later.