Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss and elected to field in the opening match of the two-Test series against Bangladesh in Dhaka on Friday. The visitors were without star batsman Babar Azam, who has been ruled out with a left knee injury. In his absence, Pakistan handed Test debuts to top-order batsmen Abdullah Fazal and Azan Awais.
Pakistan's bowling attack
Veteran seamer Mohammad Abbas returned to the playing XI, joining Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali in the pace attack. Noman Ali was the sole specialist spinner in the lineup. This combination reflects Pakistan's strategy to exploit any early movement on the Dhaka pitch.
Bangladesh's lineup
For Bangladesh, Taskin Ahmed made his return to Test cricket for the first time since December 2024, having been sidelined due to injury. He was joined by Nahid Rana and Ebadot Hossain to form the pace attack. The spin duties were handled by Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam.
Playing XIs
Bangladesh: Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Najmul Hossain Shanto (capt), Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Nahid Rana.
Pakistan: Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Fazal, Shan Masood (capt), Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Ali Agha, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Noman Ali, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas.
