Head-to-head record
England lead 13-1
In the World Cups: England lead 1-0
In the sub-continent: England lead 6-0
l With Kevin Pietersen and Stuart Broad ruled out through injury, England will be going through a period of adjustment as they try and find the right balance in their playing XI.
l The only time England have lost to Bangladesh was in July 2010 in Bristol when they lost a close chase by five runs.
England (WLTWL) have had a scrappy win over Netherlands, a tied game with India, a defeat by Ireland and a thrilling six-run win over South Africa. After providing a lot of the drama at the World Cup, they will want a relatively easy win and if other results in the group go their way, they could secure their slot in the quarter-finals on Friday.
l Bangladesh (LWLWW) have had to face a barrage of criticism after their pounding in the hands of the West Indies, and the contest against England will be more of a psychological test for them, than a cricketing one.
l With Strauss (280 runs from four innings) leading the run scorers’ chart with an uncharacteristically high strike rate of 104, and Trott (222 runs) and Bell (188 runs) in
the top 10, England are on a high in terms of their batting strength.
l While Pietersen’s exit is a big blow for them, the return of Eoin Morgan will be viewed as a significant positive. However, Morgan had a forgettable ODI series in Australia, scoring only 106 runs from six innings. His last meaningful innings was an unbeaten 107 against Pakistan at Southampton six months ago.
l For Bangladesh, their batting is their biggest concern, despite a gamely chase against India in the World Cup opener. Tamim Iqbal (114 runs) and Sakib al Hasan (79 runs) are in the top 50 run getters so far, with nobody in the top 25 even.
l Both teams have largely struggled with their bowling. However, England at least have Tim Bresnan (eight wickets) and Graeme Swann (seven wickets) with very respectable figures. But, for Bangladesh, much was expected from their spinners and none of their spinners have been among the wickets really, with Shafiul Islam their leading wicket taker with five wickets so far.
