IND vs BAN Match Preview- ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Match 2

India and Bangladesh will be facing each other in the second game of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. The match is scheduled to be played on Thursday (February 20) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.

In the last edition of the Champions Trophy, India and Bangladesh faced each other in the semifinal. India had completely outplayed Bangladesh in that game, winning it by nine wickets. While Bangladesh had posted a competitive total of 264/7, India had chased it down with utmost ease and lost just one wicket.

India's current captain Rohit Sharma scored an unbeaten century in that game and will be eyeing a similar performance in the upcoming game. So, as Bangladesh and India get ready to take on each other, we are taking a look at the IND vs BAN match preview.

IND vs BAN Match Preview- ICC Champions Trophy 2025, Match 2:

IND vs BAN Date and Venue:

The upcoming IND vs BAN match will be played on Thursday (February 20) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai. The match will be played from 02:30 PM (IST).

Squads:

India:

Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy

Bangladesh:

Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Parvez Hossain Emon, Tawhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmud Ullah, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Nahid Rana

IND vs BAN key battles:

Rohit Sharma vs Mustafizur Rahman:

Rohit Sharma will be one of India's main players in the tournament. In the last two ICC events, Rohit led the team from the very front and will be keen to do so in the upcoming competition as well. Under his captaincy, India made it to the final of the 2023 World Cup and won the 2024 T20 World Cup.

With the team now eyeing Champions Trophy glory, the onus will be on Rohit to deliver with the bat. The India captain, however, has not looked at his best in recent times. Although he recently scored a century against England, he was out for single-digit scores in the other two games.

With Rohit struggling with his rhythm, Bangladesh will be hoping that their pace spearhead Mustafizur Rahman gets his wicket early. Rohit usually struggles against left-arm pacers and Mustafizur will be fancying his chances.

Mahmudullah vs Kuldeep Yadav:

Mahmudullah will be a big threat for Team India in the upcoming IND vs BAN match. The veteran batsman has been one of Bangladesh's key players for more than a decade now and his team will be relying on him heavily once again.

The right-handed batsman can not only anchor the innings but can also play the big shots whenever the situation demands. In Bangladesh's last ODI assignment which was the three-match ODI series in West Indies, he was the highest run-scorer.

India will be well aware of the threat posed by Mahmudullah and will be hoping that their spin spearhead Kuldeep Yadav dismisses him as early as possible.

Shreyas Iyer vs Nasum Ahmed:

Bangladesh will have their task cut out against Shreyas Iyer and will be relying on their spinner Nasum Ahmed for his wicket. He recently picked up 13 wickets in the Bangladesh Premier League and will be hoping to get the big wicket of Iyer as well.

The India batsman was in sublime form during the three-match ODI series against England. In three games, he registered scores of 59, 44, and 78 and will be eyeing a good outing against Bangladesh too.

IND vs BAN Key Players

IND - Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja will be the key players for India.

BAN - Najmul Hossain Shanto, Soumya Sarkar, Tawhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mahmudullah, and Taskin Ahmed will be the key players for Bangladesh.

IND vs BAN Weather And Pitch Report:

Rain is unlikely to play spoilsport during the IND vs BAN match. The temperature will be hovering in the 20s throughout the match.

The pitch at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium is expected to be slow and it won't be easy for the batters to play their shots.

Both the teams will also like to chase at the venue because of the record. Out of the 58 ODIs played at the venue so far, only 22 have been won by teams batting first.

Conclusion:

India and Bangladesh will be keen to start their Champions Trophy campaign on a winning note. India have momentum with them and they will look to make the most of it.

Bangladesh have not done well in recent times but are more than capable of springing a surprise or two now and then.