New Zealand captain Tom Latham believes the upcoming white-ball tour of Bangladesh offers a valuable chance to evaluate their squad depth, particularly because a number of established players are missing the series. Several frontline members are tied up with franchise action in competitions such as the Indian Premier League and the Pakistan Super League, leaving the visitors to rely on a slightly reshaped group for the six matches.
The first group of New Zealand players landed in Dhaka on Monday morning, while the remainder are expected to arrive later that night ahead of the schedule. Latham feels the overall make-up of the squad still contains enough international experience to perform, even with a new-look lineup. “It’s obviously a slightly different looking squad to what we’re used to with guys at IPL and PSL. It presents opportunities to some younger guys, or maybe guys with a little less experience,” Latham said. “But if you look at the squad as a whole, everyone’s played for New Zealand at some point. The more experience we can get into some of these guys obviously builds depth throughout our line-up.”
Adapting to spin-friendly conditions in Bangladesh is central to Latham’s plans for success. He stressed the importance of preparation and carefully interpreting what the pitch and match environment will demand. “You look back on previous games and try to get as much information as you can. But heading to Bangladesh, we know that spin plays a massive part,” he said. “Understanding that things may look slightly differently than what they do in New Zealand is important.”
He also underlined the role of day-to-day work leading into each match. “The work you do leading up to the game is really important. Hopefully you can start well, which makes a massive difference. It’s important we always adapt. It’s a really good opportunity for younger or less experienced guys to come into challenging conditions. We’ll take it game by game, try to enjoy it as a group, and if we play well, hopefully we’ll be where we want to be at the end,” Latham added.
New Zealand will have a day off before shifting into full preparation on Wednesday at the Sher-e Bangla National Cricket Stadium. That venue will host the first two games of the three-match ODI series. The opening ODI is set for April 17, followed by the second on April 20 at the same stadium, before the teams move to Chattogram for the decider on April 23 at the Bir Shreshtho Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman Cricket Stadium.
The T20I phase begins in Chattogram, with matches scheduled for April 27 and April 29. The final T20I will then take place in Dhaka on May 2. Bangladesh started their series build-up at the Sher-e Bangla National Cricket Stadium on March 27.
The Bangladesh board has also announced a change to the start times for all three ODI matches in Dhaka and Chattogram, moving them three hours earlier. The stated intention is to ensure the matches conclude by sunset, which is around 6:30 pm in Bangladesh during this period. The ODIs will begin at 11:00 am.
For the shorter format, all three T20Is are planned to start at 2:00 pm, with an aim to finish them by about 5:30 pm.
