Asia Cup 2018, Final- India vs Bangladesh: Three Reasons Why India Should Lift the Title

After a dominating performance for the majority of the Asia Cup, India is all set to lock horns against Bangladesh in the final of the tournament which is slated to be played at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai. By far India has been the most dominant side in the tournament. They have beaten Pakistan twice, Bangladesh once and also won their opening game against Hong Kong. Despite a thrilling tie against Afghanistan, India will be upbeat to win the Asia Cup for the seventh time.

India opted for as many as five changes in the previous match. All the five players who were rested for the match are expected to be back for the all-important clash. They are undoubtedly the best team in the competition by quite a big margin. The way they thrashed Pakistan in both the matches shows the amount of talent the team has despite the absence of the best player in the world, Virat Kohli.

Let us have a look at three possible reasons which will help India defend the Asia Cup title against Bangladesh.

The return of the two openers.

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will be back in the playing XI after being rested from the previous game against Afghanistan which was a dead rubber.  Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan have been prolific run scorers for India in the tournament. Dhawan scored a magnificent century in the first match against Hong Kong. He had a few low scores in the next two games but bounced back strongly to hit another century in the Super four clash against Pakistan.

Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, has been the most consistent batsman of the tournament. He smashed a match-winning century against Pakistan in the Super four clash. The Indian captain has also scored three half-centuries in the rest of the matches. Hence there is no doubt about the fact that their presence will bolster the team.

The pace bowling duo.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah will return for the all-important final against Bangladesh which is slated to be held later today. The duo was rested for the last match against Afghanistan to keep themselves fresh for the final. There is simply no doubt about the fact that the duo of Bhuvneshwar and Jasprit Bumrah is one of the very best in the world.

When it comes to Bumrah, he can bowl brilliantly both with the new ball and in the death overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has also bagged quite a few wickets in the tournament and has given India the ideal start in the bowling department in a couple of matches. Khaleel Ahmed and Siddharth Kaul are likely to make way for the duo.

The two wrist spinners of India.

The wrist spinning duo of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal hasn’t been at their best. However, there is no doubt about the fact that the pair has been prolific wicket-takers for India. Ever since the ouster of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, the duo has taken the onus on themselves. In the tournament, Kuldeep and Chahal haven’t been at their very best.

However, the duo might well be the two vital cogs for India as they hope to lift another Asia Cup title. Kuldeep Yadav has shown in patches that what he is capable of. Furthermore, Chahal is still to make his mark in the tournament so far on a consistent basis. However, he bowled well during the Super four clash against Pakistan in Asia Cup.