The opening game of the series will be another milestone for the Sharjah Cricket Stadium as it marks the 300th international match at the iconic venue. Sharjah Cricket Stadium holds the record for hosting the most number of ODIS in the world with 252 matches to its name. The first ODI between Afghanistan and Bangladesh will be the 300th game - Tests, ODIS and T20s combined together. The historic venue has hosted 250 ODIS, 38 T20s and 10 Test matches. Sharjah Cricket Stadium is the home ground of the Afghanistan team. Afghanistan recently hosted South Africa in three-match ODI series. They beat South Africa 2-1. Against a depleted Bangladesh, Afghanistan are overwhelming favourites as they are well aware of the conditions here. Afghanistan made quite a few changes to their squad. They have brought in opening batsman Sediqullah Atal and wily spinner Noor Ahmad in place of Ibrahim Zadran, who is nursing an injury and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who injured his hand, respectively. Fazalhaq Farooqi will be again in the spotlight due to his exploits against South Africa. Farooqi obliterated the top order of South Africa in the opening game of the ODI series, which pushed the Proteas to the backfoot from the beginning. They could never recover from that shock and eventually lost the series to Afghanistan. It was their first series loss against Afghans in any format. The spin trio of Afghanistan is one of the most potent and lethal attacks in the world. Star spinner Rashid Khan, Mohamamd Nabi and Mujeeb ur Rehman can rip through any batting lineup of the world. But Mujeeb is out of action but Afghanistan found his replacement in 18-year-old off-spinner AM Ghazanfar, who put up a stellar performance against South Africa. Bangladesh are coming into the series after the humiliating Test defeat against India and South Africa. They have been depleted by the absence of their star all-rounder Shakib ul Hasan. Shakib was the poster boy of the Bangladesh cricket. He joined ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party as a lawmaker. After the revolt in the country that led to the ouster of the erstwhile premier, many serious charges were levelled against Shakib. He refused to fo back to Bangladesh after the Test series against India. Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has appointed Mohammad Salahuddin as the senior assistant coach of the Bangladesh men's cricket team. Salahuddin's contract will extend until March 15, 2025, aligning with the tenure of head coach Phil Simmons. His first assignment in this role will likely be during Bangladesh's upcoming tour of the West Indies, which kicks off with a four-day warm-up match in Antigua. Salahuddin is no stranger to the Bangladesh cricket scene, having previously served as both an assistant and fielding coach under prominent figures such as Dav Whatmore and Jamie Siddons. His coaching journey began in earnest when he took on the role of specialist coach at the BCB's national cricket academy from 2010 to 2011. Salahuddin later took his talents abroad as the head coach of Singapore in 2014, further enhancing his credentials. He holds an ACC-Cricket Australia Level 3 accreditation. 'When I took over as BCB President, I made a commitment to provide opportunities for deserving candidates to contribute to the national team set-up and Salahuddin brings with him a wealth of experience, pedigree, and knowledge, making him the ideal candidate for this role. I firmly believe it is time to integrate more capable Bangladeshi coaches into the system,' Faruque said in a statement on Tuesday. Widely recognised as one of Bangladesh's leading cricketing voices, Salahuddin has experienced a tumultuous relationship with the BCB over the years. Notably, he was appointed as a batting consultant in 2017, only for the board to rescind the decision at the last minute.