Ebony Rainford-Brent
Ex-England batter

I'm excited - this is my Test debut on TMS. I haven't slept well with nerves, knowing I was alongside the big gun (Aggers!).

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Skipper Alastair Cook is back with his team after flying back to England for the birth of his second daughter.

He's looking forward to the first Test in Chittagong, which will see him break Alec Stewart's record of 133 England Test caps.

However, he warned of some tough, attritional cricket in his pre-series news conference.

Speaking to BBC Sport, he said: "You are testing yourself in conditions that are very alien to English players.

"You don't often get the flurry of wickets you do in England or Australia, or the flurry or runs where you can change a session quickly.

"You can lose a lot of wickets quickly towards the end of the game, but the first three or four days of cricket is hard and normally quite even.

"The clue is in the name. It's Test cricket - that's why it is such a good game."

Here's BBC Weather's Phil Avery to explain more...

If you are brave enough to have got up early to follow this game you might want to comment on it as well. You can send us your thoughts on Twitter (using the hashtag #bbccricket) via text (on 81111 - UK only) or by email (using the TMS inbox - tms@bbc.co.uk).

Jonathan Agnew
BBC Test Match Special

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I can see the argument for Ben Duckett opening because he will play some shots against the harder ball and is more positive than Hameed and Cook might be together.

However, I don't see the point of bringing Hameed on this tour unless they play him. It's the perfect opportunity to see what he's made of.

It's going to be quite lively, the Bangladeshis are in your face and vociferous, but I don't think that will bother him. It will be a good experience for him.

He scored almost 1,200 first-class runs at an average of 50 during the summer and he has clearly got a very special temperament for a young man.

It's not going to be easy this winter, and it will get tougher in the second part of the tour in India, but it will be a waste if Hameed goes back home at Christmas and we haven't had a good look at him.

BBC Radio's Asian Network

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Surrey slow left-armer Zafar Ansari is one of four players of South Asian heritage in England's touring party.

He's not playing in this first Test, but he's delighted to join Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid and Haseeb Hameed in the squad.

“It’s a nice point of connection for the four of us," Ansari told the BBC's Asian Network. "It’s a real positive step for English cricket.

“It’s going to be tough to get into the side for me though. There’s so many good players who have a place in it at the moment, so I’m not expecting anything. I’ll just go out there and see what comes of it.”

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So, Ben Duckett is in instead of young Hameed. He is the only debutant, with Gary Ballance in the middle order. Gareth Batty resumes his Test career. The England whites he fetched out of a bin liner in his loft will have required a bit of bending back into flexibility. 

Batty batting at 11? Every England player has a first-class century.

Three new Test players for Bangladesh - Sabbir Rahman, Kamrul Islam Rabbi and Mehedi Hasan.

Bangladesh: Tamim, Kayes, Haque, Sabbir, Mahmudullah, Shakib, Mushfiqur, M Hasan, Taijul, Shafiul, Rabbi.  

England: Cook, Duckett, Root, Ballance, Moeen, Stokes, Bairstow, Woakes, Rashid, Broad, Batty.

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim, speaking at the toss: "Obviously it looks dry but you can't control the toss. Hopefully the boys are excited and ready to go. It's a long break we are used to that though and hopefully the boys are fresh and ready. 

"There are a couple of injury concerns but hopefully that is an opportunity for the newcomers and I'm hoping that the older heads will put their hands up and help out."

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England captain Alastair Cook, speaking at the toss: "I saw the pitch yesterday and it was dry and might turn. We were always going to bat first on here.

"It was a tough decision on who to select. We have two outstanding cricketers in Haseeb Hameed and Ben Duckett, and Has is sure to play for England in the future but we went for Ben today."

Alastair Cook calls heads. Heads it is. England are going to have a bat.

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Here's our video tribute to Captain Cook...

Some impressive numbers!

Alastair Cook becomes England's most capped Test cricketer in this match, while he also continues a staggering run which has seen him play in 131 consecutive Tests. He's fast closing on Allan Border's record of 153...

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The England squad for this tour is a mixture of new and old, young and experienced. At one end of the scale you have 19-year-old Lancashire batsman Haseeb Hameed, Northants strokemaker Ben Duckett and Surrey all-rounder Zafar Ansari. At the other, 39-year-old Surrey captain and spinner Gareth Batty is back in the squad for the first time since 2005.

And then there's the skipper, Alastair Cook, who is on the verge of a very significant milestone...

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It is hard to think of a time in living memory when England have been so blessed with cricketing talent. Across all three formats, the Three Lions not only have a strong starting XI but a host of in-form players pressing claims for inclusion. 

Now, as a result of others' injuries and security concerns, the players of the future have a chance to make themselves very much part of the present.