(ESPNCRICINFO) – Afghanistan are on the cusp of a third consecutive ODI series win against Bangladesh. They won the last two series in 2023 and 2024, as these two sides have become frequent bilateral opponents. Afghanistan’s five-wicket win on Wednesday was also a breath of fresh air after they lost their last five international matches.

Azmatullah Omarzai was the all-round star in the game, taking three wickets and scoring an important 40 in the chase. His ODI stocks have been on the rise for the last few years. Rashid Khan also had a strong outing, picking up 3 for 38 and going past 200 ODI wickets.

Afghanistan’s win this week also highlighted their other strengths. Rahmanullah Gurbaz played a mature knock under pressure, curbing his natural flair for the sake of the team’s stability. Rahmat Shah and Hashmatullah Shahidi continued as the background guys, keeping the batting line-up in shape in tricky chases. Left-arm spinner Nangeyalia Kharote was another unsung hero, conceding just 31 runs in his full quota, taking Saif Hassan’s wicket. It is these percentage performers that keep the Afghanistan team going in ODIs.

That isn’t the case for Bangladesh, who are having a hard time finding any consistent performers in this format. They are now lurching from one defeat to another in ODIs, having won just two games in the last 12 months. It was evident on Wednesday why they are no longer an ODI force. Bangladesh threw away a good start with soft dismissals and despite a recovery through a 101-run fourth-wicket stand, the rest of the batters succumbed to Rashid’s accuracy. Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Jaker Ali and Nurul Hasan were all lbw to Rashid, which might have kept the head coach Phil Simmons busy in the lead-up to Saturday’s match.

Bangladesh also need to figure out the Abu Dhabi conditions better. Afghanistan picking four spinners may have a lot to do with their confidence in the likes of Kharote and AM Ghazanfar, but Bangladesh missed out on playing Rishad Hossain. Bangladesh won the T20I leg of the tour 3-0. They’ll need some of that form seeping into the one-day leg if they are to keep the series alive.