England find themselves in the unusual position of playing just for pride when they take on hosts Bangladesh in the final match of their T20I series in Mirpur on Tuesday.
Disappointing defeats in the first two games of three see the Three Lions looking to at least get a win on the board, with captain Jos Buttler admitting: "(We) try to use the guys who would be exposed to these conditions in the 50-over World Cup as well."
That competition takes place in India later this year and England are 3/1 to retain the trophy they won on home soil back in the summer of 2019, with Bangladesh priced at 40/1.
| What | Bangladesh v England, third T20I |
| Where | Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Mirpur |
| When | 09:00, Tuesday 14th March |
| How to watch | Sky Sports Cricket & Main Event |
| Odds | Bangladesh 6/4, England 8/15 |
Batting line-up proving too weak
Having lost both Will Jacks and Tom Abell to injury before the Twenty20 series got started, England have been left short on options in their batting order, with the likes of Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Harry Brook, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes also absent.
That has left Buttler with added responsibility to fire with the bat and he did so in the series opener as he smashed 67 from 42 balls as England were beaten by six wickets with two overs to spare.
For the second match Buttler switched from opener to number four and made just four as the tourists collapsed to 117 all out and were beaten by four wickets.
He may well be tempted to return to the top of the order for the series finale, with the rest of the England batters having failed to make a score better than 38 across the first two games.
Opener Phil Salt has looked in decent touch in making 38 and 25 and he and Buttler have looked a little more comfortable at the crease than the plethora of left-handers in the England top and middle-order.
Salt is 10/3 to be Team - Top Batter on Tuesday, while England are 8/13 to hit Most Match Sixes, having done so in the first T20 clash and been level on two with the Tigers in the second match-up.
Bowlers keeping England in the game
England’s bowlers almost dug them out of a huge hole on Sunday, making the hosts struggle massively in pursuit of 118 for victory, which they reached with just seven balls to spare.
Fit-again paceman Jofra Archer was the pick of the attack as he took 3-13 from four overs, conceding just 3.25 runs per over in a fiery and accurate spell, having struggled a little in the series opener in taking 1-27 from three overs.
Whether Archer will be risked for a third game in six days is open for debate, with Mark Wood his most likely replacement having sat out the second match of the series.
Wood can be backed at 15/4 to be Team - Top Bowler, while teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed is available at 11/2 in the same market, having taken a wicket with his second ball in T20I cricket on Sunday.
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Mehidy makes the most of Mirpur opportunity
Having taken the series opener, Bangladesh opted to draft in Mehidy Hasan Miraz for the first of the two games in Mirpur, with the off-spinner putting in a Player of the Match performance in taking 4-12 from four overs before clearing the boundary twice in making 20 from 16 deliveries.
With the third game of three taking place at the same venue, the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, it seems sensible to keep Mehidy in mind at 15/4 to be Team - Top Bowler.
Skipper Shakib Al Hasan, at 15/4, is also a more than decent option, having taken 1-26 and 1-13 in the victories that have already secured a series success.
With the bat, left-hander Najmul Hossain Shanto has been the undoubted star of the show for the Tigers, making 51 in Chittagong before adding a crucial unbeaten 46 in the nervy victory in Mirpur.
He also made two half-centuries from three innings in the preceding ODI series against England, so is certainly a batter showing both form and consistency.
Shanto is 7/2 to be Team - Top Batter on Tuesday, as he goes in search of a fourth 50 on his last six T20I innings, while the 24-year-old is 18/1 to be named as Player of the Match.
