Bangladesh look to continue their current dominance over neighbors and habitual rivals Pakistan
ICC World Test Championship
The World Test Championship 2025-27 returns after a break of four months. Familiar opponents Pakistan and Bangladesh will face-off for a two-match series starting this Friday with the matches to be played in Mirpur and Sylhet respectively. Both the sides have played together in all the past three WTC cycles. Pakistan won the first two series but Bangladesh roared back in style with a 2-0 win over a lackluster Pakistan in 2024 playing away from home which marked the biggest result in their red-ball format history.
Both these sides have been the worst performers along with West Indies in the history of the World Test Championship so far. Pakistan started this cycle with a 1-1 result at home against South Africa last September while Bangladesh lost 1-0 to another frequent opponents Sri Lanka away in June 2025. Bangladesh also played a two-match Test series at home against Ireland in November winning it 2-0, their last outing in red-ball cricket which was not part of the current WTC. Since then, the Tigers have overseen a turbulent period in International cricket after they refused to participate in the T20 World Cup due to political tension with their neighbors and co-hosts India. Two months later, the Bangladesh government intervened yet again when they dissolved the Aminul Haque led BCB presidency and appointed Tamim Iqbal as the new president after Iqbal had accused Aminul of interfering in the election process leading to a review of the elections by the national government.
Pakistan were jolted by a ferocious performance by Bangladesh two years ago in their own den which led them to pivot from placid pitches to spin-friendly minefields. They did manage to win 2-1 against England at home but then drew 1-1 against both West Indies and South Africa. They will now be facing similar spin-friendly conditions but the fast bowlers have also started to produce results for the hosts given the rise of some brilliant pace-bowling talent in the country. The visitors have packed their side with two spinners, five pacers and two all-rounders.
There are a few fresh faces in the batting department with promising young talents like Abdullah Fazal, Azan Awais and back-up wicket-keeper Ghazi Ghori who recently made his ODI debut in the ODI series against the same opponents. The core however, remains the same for the Shan Masood led side. Imam-ul-Haq will partner with either Fazal or Awais at the top after Abdullah Shafique was dropped following his inconsistent run in the red-ball format. The skipper, who will be playing his 200th First Class game, will take the No.3 spot followed by their mainstay Babar Azam who has gone 30 innings without a three-figure score in Test match cricket. Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan and the finger spin all-rounder Salman Ali Agha round up the batting. Shaheen Shah Afridi is the highest wicket-taker in the squad with 121 Test wickets. He will partner with Hasan Ali, Khurram Shahzad, uncapped Amad Butt and the recalled Mohammad Abbas, a regular in the County Championship who might be a crucial weapon later when Pakistan tour England. Sajid Khan and Noman Ali will be their frontline spinners.
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto will look to build on their 2-0 series win against Pakistan in 2024
Bangladesh are enjoying a rare period of authority over Pakistan as they currently hold the trophy in all formats. A 2-0 red-ball series win in 2024 was followed by a 2-1 drubbing in both white-ball formats recently. They are enjoying a dominant run at home in all formats, having lost just one series since April 2025. Captain Najmul Shanto will lead a settled side for the first Test in Mirpur. Openers Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Shadman Islam will be followed by the experienced southpaws Monimul Haque and skipper Shanto. The 38-year old Mushfiqur Rahim, Bangladesh's highest run-scorer in Tests will be a significant cog along with Litton Das who will take the wicket-keeping gloves. They have also added the uncapped duo of their aggressive white-ball opener Tanzid Hasan and the promising keeper Amite Hasan, who averages 49 in First Class cricket after 49 matches as back-ups.
Two of the top three wicket-takers for Bangladesh in Tests will lead their spin attack. All-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz and the veteran Taijul Islam will offer contrasting skill-sets as Nayeem Hasan will likely warm the bench. It will be interesting to see their pace-bowling combination for the Mirpur pitch. Their fast-bowling sensation Nahid Rana will be a definite inclusion after he has proved to be a menace for the opposition. Fresh off a two five-wicket hauls in ODIs, Rana's pace was crucial in the second Test at Rawalpindi where he took 4-44 bundling out Pakistan for 172. Two out of Ebadot Hossain, Shoriful Islam and Taskin Ahmed (one wicket away from 50 wickets in Tests) are expected to feature. The impressive Hasan Mahmud did not make the squad due to an elbow injury.
The Mirpur pitch has traditionally favored the spinners but the recent mindset shift from the hosts suggests this pitch will have a pace-friendly outlook. There is a lot of grass left on the pitch and with Bangladesh scheduled to tour Australia and South Africa later this year, they should give more exposure to their ever-improving fast-bowling unit. Mirpur has historically been a bat-first venue but if there is early moisture in the pitch, the winning captain might elect to bowl in order to give their fast-bowlers a chance to exploit the help in morning session. Showers are expected to disrupt Day 3 and 4 but there should be enough time to produce a result in the first game. Expect Bangladesh to come out firing and continue their impressive home run but you can never disregard the might of Pakistan.
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