Afghanistan will battle it out with Bangladesh in the one-off Test at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, starting on Friday, October 9.
Afghanistan is entering this one-off Test after an innings defeat to India in the Only Test earlier in June 2026. Meanwhile, Bangladesh, captained by Najmul Hossain Shanto, levelled the two-match Test series against Australia 1-1 in August 2026. Interestingly, this game isn’t part of the WTC 2025-27 fixtures.
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026, Match Details
Match: Afghanistan vs Bangladesh, Only Test 2026
Time & Date: 11:00 AM IST, October 9 to 13
Venue: Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Probable XIs
Afghanistan
Sediqullah Atal, Abdul Malik, Rahmat Shah (c), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Afsar Zazai (wk), Ikram Alikhil, Shahidullah Kamal, Ismat Alam, Khalil Gurbaz, Ziaur Rahman Sharifi, Mohammad Saleem Safi
Bangladesh
Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Pitch Report
The Abu Dhabi surface is anticipated to assist both batters and bowlers equally. However, as the game progresses to the middle overs, we can see spinners come into the picture. Nevertheless, we can expect batters to settle down and score runs at a good pace.
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Top Picks
Rahmat Shah
Afghanistan captain Rahmat Shah has scored 749 runs in his last nine Tests at an average of 44.06.
Taijul Islam
Bangladesh left-arm spinner Taijul Islam has scalped 272 runs in 62 Tests with 19 five-wicket hauls.
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Captain picks
Mushfiqur Rahim
Veteran Bangladesh batter Mushfiqur Rahim has amassed 6876 runs in 105 Tests, including 14 centuries and 29 half-centuries.
Najmul Hossain Shanto
Najmul Hossain Shanto, the Bangladesh captain, has accumulated 2694 runs in 44 Tests, including nine centuries and seven half-centuries.
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Head-to-head Dream11 team
Rahmat Shah (vc), Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim (c), Ziaur Rahman Sharifi, Taijul Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana
AFG vs BAN, Only Test 2026 Grand League Dream11 team
Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Ziaur Rahman Sharifi, Taijul Islam (vc), Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana
