With their unbeaten streak in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 halted by hosts England, the Indian team will be looking to make quick amends against a spirited Bangladesh side today. The match kicks-off at 3.30 PM (Bangladesh Standard Time).
India’s 31-run loss on Sunday, 30 June, was only their third defeat in ICC World Cup matches this decade. While the loss did not have any bearing on the second-placed side’s position in the points table, the Indian team needs to win at least one of their last two games to make a smooth entry into the top four. Against England, chinks in India’s game play came to the fore; a lacklustre performance by the spin department, coupled with the approach of the middle-order in a failed chase, will be a point of contention as they aim to quickly regroup.
Bangladesh’s hot-and-cold tournament has now come down to them needing wins in both their remaining games, and then hoping for a favourable outcome from New Zealand’s next fixture. While their batting unit has shown stomach for fight, consistently posting high scores, the bowling department has let them down in crunch situations. The side will be buoyed by the possible return of Mahmudullah in the middle-order, who is recovering quickly from his calf injury, and is expected to make it to the playing XI.
Key players:
Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh): As has been the case throughout the tournament, Bangladesh will be heavily banking on their talismanic all-rounder to see them through. Currently ranked third in the tournament’s run-getters’ list, Shakib’s experience will be key for Bangladesh in a must-win game against an Indian side that is expected to come back hard. His unflappable batting in the middle overs, coupled with his wily left-arm spin, could be crucial in a potentially high-scoring game.
Rohit Sharma (India): The Indian opener has peaked just at the right time, posting three centuries so far, despite coming off a patchy run of form ahead of the tournament. Against England, he might not have been at his fluent best, but ensured that he occupied one end, anchoring India towards the target alongside Virat Kohli. Rohit’s only World Cup game against Bangladesh came in the 2015 quarter-finals, where his 137 took India through to the next round. Given his recent form, India will be banking on him to come up with something similar in Birmingham.
Conditions
It’s expected to be sunny in Birmingham on Tuesday, with hardly any chances of rain. After witnessing 300-plus scores in both innings of the England-India game, the Edgbaston surface could produce another run-heavy match.
Squads:
Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (c), Abu Jayed, Liton Das (wk), Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Mithun (wk), Mohammad Saifuddin, Mosaddek Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Tamim Iqbal.
India: Virat Kohli (c), Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Vijay Shankar, Rohit Sharma, Kuldeep Yadav.
