The Sports Desk
Bangladesh will look for another upset after their fine win over Sri Lanka in the first Super Four game. The big question: can Bangladesh really challenge India?
And since India’s decategorization in the late 19th century (the country had been described for thousands of years as a vast rural expanse punctuated by rivers and mountains) into Asian, and not Aryan or Sanskritic, it has looked at its cricket against Pakistan with very different feelings than when it bleat to points wins against England. “Two countries play a match,” wrote Karan Thapar following the 2004 series, about the games played under floodlights during which his players were booed on their way from their hotels to the stadiums, Hispanic fans pulled from bus windows then beaten up only for being mistaken as Pakistani fans coming to watch Virender Sehwag. After yet another victory against Pakistan, India captain Suryakumar Yadav cited India’s overwhelming head-to-head record in recent times to imply that the word “rivalry” no longer applies to these duels. No Indian captain would have ever probably talked the way but for the peculiar India-Pakistan context.
India’s superiority is underpinned by results: They have won 32 of 35 T20Is since the beginning of 2024. Their mix of skill and purpose is perhaps making for the greatest T20I combination ever. Combined with the sluggish Dubai pitches, India can manoeuvre tactically, frequently deploying just one frontline pacer to deliver his three overs in the powerplay.
Bangladesh, meanwhile, will be buoyed by having disposed of the leaders of their group, Sri Lanka in the first round. In the sluggish conditions, Mahedi Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman were stunning with 8-0-45-5. If they can build on that against India, then they are serious contenders for the final. Bangladesh will be aiming to do the unthinkable: beat India for the first time since 2019 and make it 3-15 in their head-to-head record.
- Form guide:
India: WWWWW (last five T20Is)
Bangladesh: WWLWW
Sanju Samson and Mustafizur Rahman are under the spotlight. India are testing Samson in the middle order, and pushing around him names like Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma. Given he doesn’t get too many chances, Samson would be a player to watch out for against Mustafizur’s canny bowling on slower tracks. Mustafizur, with a return of four-0-20-three, has given a glimpse of his effectiveness to Sri Lanka and an encore could keep Bangladesh in the game.
There shouldn’t be any major tweaks in India’s playing XI as they have reverted to their best team following the series opener. Bangladesh could bring in one change, with Tanzim Hasan likely to come in for Shoriful Islam, though captain Litton Das is likely to play despite a stiff back.
Probable line-ups:
India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah,Varun Chakravarthy
Bangladesh: Saif Hassan, Tanzid Hasan, Litton Das (c & wk), Towhid Hridoy, Shamim Hossain, Jaker Ali, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman
The slow Dubai surfaces are likely to make life hard for batsmen again, especially during the middle overs. Recent numbers underscore India’s strength: Hardik Pandya is now second in the list of leading wicket-takers for India in T20Is, having gone past Yuzvendra Chahal while Mustafizur Rahman shares the top spot among Bangladeshis with Shakib Al Hasan. If Mustafizur goes past Shakib, he will be only the fourth bowler to get to the 150-wicket mark in T20Is.
The match is expected to be a game of strategies as Bangladesh look to upset the odds and India will like to assert their supremacy.
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