Champions Trophy: Key player battles in New Zealand-Bangladesh clash
What's the story
The New Zealand cricket team will take on Bangladesh in the third match of Group A in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy 2025..
The match will be played on Monday (February 24) at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
While New Zealand defeated co-hosts Pakistan in their opening games, Bangladesh lost to India.
Here we look at the key player battles that might be on display.
#1
Will Young vs Taskin Ahmed
New Zealand opener Will Young was in phenomenal touch against Pakistan. During his 107-run stay, he brilliantly tackled Pakistan's formidable pace attack.
Bangladesh's key pacer Taskin Ahmed, who is known for picking up important wickets, will have the responsibility of getting rid of Young early on.
As per ESPNcricinfo, Taskin has claimed 12 powerplay wickets at 29.75 since the start of 2024 (ODIs).
#2
Kane Williamson vs Rishad Hossain
The battle between New Zealand's Kane Williamson and Bangladesh spinner Rishad Hossain would be enticing.
The former has been among the runs lately and would want to score big against the Tigers.
Meanwhile, Rishad, who dismissed the talismanic Virat Kohli in Bangladesh's opener, will look to rattle Williamson with his leg-spin.
Notably, Williamson owns a decent ODI average of 42.22 against leg-spin bowling.
#3
Towhid Hridoy vs Mitchell Santner
Towhid Hridoy made a brilliant ton in Bangladesh's opener against India.
He negotiated three quality left-arm spinners during his stay - Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, and Kuldeep Yadav.
The middle-order batter will be up against NZ skipper Mitchell Santner in the upcoming duel.
Santner is among the top left-arm spinners going around as he is particularly lethal in the middle overs.
He claimed three wickets in the recent Pakistan clash.
#4
Daryl Mitchell vs Mustafizur Rahman
Another key anticipated battle is between Daryl Mitchell and Mustafizur Rahman.
Mitchell, who is known for his hard-hitting batting style, owns an ODI average of 89.50 against left-arm pacers.
Meanwhile, Rahman has a knack for frustrating batters with his slower deliveries. He will hence look to contain Mitchell's scoring.
Mitchell has scored 43 ODI runs off 31 balls against Rahman without being dismissed.