New Zealand National Cricket Team vs Bangladesh National Cricket Team Match: Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bowl first against New Zealand in the first T20I of the New Zealand tour of Bangladesh 2026 at the Bir Sreshtho Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman Stadium in Chattogram on Monday, April 27, 2026.
New Zealand were dealt a setback before the match with regular captain Tom Latham ruled out after being struck on his right big toe during training. Nick Kelly is leading the side in his absence.
Bangladesh captain Litton Das said the team opted to bowl first, citing favorable conditions and a balanced combination of three seamers and two spinners.
Kelly said New Zealand would have preferred to bowl as well but were comfortable batting first on what appeared to be a good surface.
Playing XIs
Bangladesh (Playing XI): Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Saif Hassan, Litton Das(w/c), Parvez Hossain Emon, Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Shoriful Islam, Ripon Mondol
New Zealand (Playing XI): Tim Robinson, Katene Clarke, Dane Cleaver(w), Nick Kelly(c), Bevon Jacobs, Dean Foxcroft, Josh Clarkson, Nathan Smith, Ish Sodhi, Matthew Fisher, Ben Lister
Pitch Report
The pitch is expected to offer true bounce with limited assistance for spin. Recent matches at the venue have seen average scores around 155, although teams could target totals above 170 on a surface considered conducive to batting.
