When New Zealand plays Bangladesh in their Champions Trophy Group A encounter on Monday, they will be keen to guarantee their place in the semifinals. The Black Caps dominated Group A with a net run rate of 1.200 after defeating Pakistan by 60 runs to get off to a fast start. They will be quite close to a semifinal berth if they win.

In contrast, Bangladesh has to win to be in the running after losing to India by six wickets, dropping them to third place in the group with a negative net run rate of -0.408.

With the help of their recent tri-series victory, New Zealand has adjusted well to the conditions in Pakistan and looked strong in their first game. But with Rachin Ravindra potentially making a comeback from injury, they have a selection conundrum. Will Young and Devon Conway were able to start the innings in his absence, but the choice has become more difficult in light of Young’s century against Pakistan. Young is difficult to drop because of his ability to manage spin and his left-right combination at the top.

Bangladesh has to bounce back from their defeat against India as soon as possible. Their bowlers need more runs to defend, and their top order has to improve after a weak start. In their last game, they also lost due to careless fielding. To maintain their aspirations of making it to the semifinals, Bangladesh might draw inspiration from their previous shock victory against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy.