Afghanistan and Bangladesh to follow Asia Cup with white-ball series in UAE

‌Afghanistan and Bangladesh will extend their stay in the United Arab Emirates, with both sides playing a bilateral white-ball series immediately after the Asia Cup T20 2025 next month. Afghanistan, who have been hosting their matches in the Gulf nation, will play three T20Is and three ODIs against the Tigers from October 2nd.

"We are proud to host Bangladesh in this highly anticipated series,” said Naseeb Khan, CEO of the Afghanistan Cricket Board. “This tour highlights the strength of our partnership and our joint commitment to delivering world-class cricket experiences, even in neutral venues. Fans can look forward to exciting matches and top-level competition."

"We look forward to taking on Afghanistan in what promises to be a competitive and exciting white-ball series in the UAE,” BCB CEO Nizammudin Chowdhury added. “This tour not only presents valuable competition following the Asia Cup but also reflects the mutual respect and strong relationship between our two cricket boards. I would like to extend our sincere thanks to the Afghanistan Cricket Board for hosting the series and for their continued spirit of collaboration."

The first T20I will kickstart at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, four days after the summit clash of the continental tournament set to take place on September 28. The remaining two matches are also slated to happen at the same venue on October 3 and 5, respectively, before the sides travel to Abu Dhabi for the ODI leg.

All three ODIs will be played at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi from October 8 to 14. This will be Afghanistan’s first bilateral assignment in the UAE after back-to-back ODI series wins against South Africa and Bangladesh in Sharjah late last year. Incidentally, both sides are pooled together, alongside Sri Lanka and Hong Kong, in Group B of the Asia Cup T20 2025 campaign and will play a group game in Abu Dhabi on  September 16.

Afghanistan hold a slight edge in T20Is with seven wins compared to the Tigers’ five, while the trend reverses in ODIs with Bangladesh winning 11 against Afghanistan’s eight in 19 meetings.