Traditionally regarded as a spin-heavy side, Bangladesh have made significant progress in the fast-bowling department in recent years, with pacers such as Taskin Ahmed and Nahid Rana emerging as genuine threats across formats.
The first Test between Bangladesh and Pakistan begins on Friday at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
Keeping recent sporting conditions in Bangladesh in mind, Pakistan arrived with a five-man pace attack featuring Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Abbas, Hasan Ali, Khurram Shahzad and Amad Butt.
Bangladesh, meanwhile, included four pacers in their squad- Taskin, Nahid, Shoriful Islam and Ebadot Hossain.
Taskin is set to return to Test cricket for the first time since December 2024, while Nahid has recently become one of the most talked-about bowlers in Bangladesh following his fiery performances in white-ball cricket. Shoriful and Ebadot have also shown strong form heading into the series.
Speaking ahead of the match, Shanto praised both pace attacks but gave a slight edge to his own side.
“Both teams have very good pace attacks. But if you ask me, I would say our pace bowling attack is probably slightly ahead,” Shanto said.
“When we talk about Pakistan, we always talk about their pace bowling, and there is no doubt they are a very good side with an excellent fast-bowling unit. But the way our pacers have bowled over the last few years, they deserve credit as well,” he added.
