It's amazing what good rhythm can do for the Tigers. It tends to give them a new identity, a new realisation. Take the World Cup for instance.

Bangladesh and Pakistan team for three formats during the April 17-May 10 two-nation series.

Bangladesh Cricket Board XI beat Pakistanis by one wicket at Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah in the lone practice match before the two national sides begin their series.

Pakistan must avoid a 3-0 series defeat against Bangladesh to maintain its 7th place ranking in the Reliance ICC ODI Team Rankings when the two sides face off in the first of 3 ODIs starting in Dhaka on Friday.

The five most memorable encounters between Bangladesh-Pakistan.

Pakistan cricket team arrives in Dhaka to play a series consisting of six matches – three one-day internationals (ODIs), two Tests and a T20.

At the end of the day it all came down to “what ifs” for Bangladesh. There’s no doubt that the reprieve that Rohit Sharma got in the 40th over proved to be a crucial turning point in the game. Sharma, who was in his 90s at that point, went on to hammer a series of boundaries later in the game.

Even as Ireland were hunting down West Indies in Nelson, in a quiet corner of quiet Manuka Oval in quiet Canberra, Bangladesh were going through a three-hour intense training session. Bangladesh lost both their World Cup warm-up games, one of them to Ireland, and their first opponents in the tournament are Afghanistan, who beat them in the Asia Cup last March in the only previous ODI between the two sides.

The bowling combination will be finalised once the Tigers inspect the pitch at the Manuka Oval, where they face the Afghans on Wednesday. Rubel Hossain is most likely to open the bowling attack with captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and if the team feels the match needs an extra pacer they will include young Taskin Ahmed, who has been in good touch, in the side.

It's an occasion the city dwellers are relishing; albeit silently. When Anges, a Malaysian born Australian, knows what awaits the city in two months time even though the sport is not popular in her birthplace, then it is symptomatic that the cricket loving people in the country are all set to make the occasion their own.

Bangladesh are expected to beat Ireland comfortably. They have won five out of the seven games between the two sides. The question remains whether they can stamp their authority over the Irish; something that might help them boost their confidence to their desired levels.