Unchallenged Pakistan aim for clean sweep
ESPNcricinfo previews the third ODI between Bangladesh and Pakistan in Chittagong
Match facts
Tuesday, December 6Start time 1330 (0730 GMT)
Big Picture
The fact that the third ODI is a dead rubber is hardly surprising. There has not been an ounce of competitiveness in each of the three games so far in this tour. Nasir Hossain's battling century in the second game in Mirpur wasn't enough to mask the bigger problem for Bangladesh - the batting. The overall reaction among passionate Bangladesh fans, going by feedback received by ESPNcricinfo, was not necessarily that of disappointment, but more specifically, anger. Some went as far as to question Bangladesh's right to participate at the international level. Their status as a Test nation has always been debated, though now fans have extended that discussion towards their ODI status too. Public memory is short. It's easy to forget that just over a year ago, Bangladesh thrashed a listless New Zealand 4-0 at home.Form guide
Bangladesh: LLWLL (most recent first)Pakistan: WWWWW
In the spotlight...
Since his 128 against India in the 2009 Champions Trophy, Shoaib Malik has gone 14 innings without a fifty, with a highest of 39. He's been a shadow of the player he was when he was captain, and before. His bowling gives Pakistan another spin option, but he's in the team primarily as a batsman.Team news
Pakistan are likely to make a couple of changes, dropping Imran Farhat and Sohail Tanvir, and bringing in Asad Shafiq and the left-arm seamer Mohammad Khalil.Stats and trivia
- Bangladesh have found boundaries hard to come by at the start of the innings. In the Twenty20, they scored their first in the ninth over, in the first ODI it came in the sixth, but the wait was the longest in the second ODI - it took them 11 overs.
- Bangladesh have won both their day-night games at this venue, against England and West Indies.
Quotes
"Some of the youngsters who've come into the side have worked hard to make their spot worthy. All of us have set a goal that we will now need to raise the bar."Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq
Former Bangladesh opener, now commentator Athar Ali Khan can't hide his disappointment while watching the second ODI
Mahmudullah points out a feel-good factor for his side to keep in mind
Kanishkaa Balachandran is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo