Asia Cup 2018, Super Four, Match 1: India vs Bangladesh - Toss Report

India won the toss and decided to bowl first against Bangladesh in the first match of the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.

Here is what the captains said:

Rohit Sharma:

“We will bowl first. It suits us, we have played few games here and we have realized that it better to chase. It is out strength and we will like to do that. Pitch is similar to what we play in India but it is litte more dry. We are used to these conditions. Just 1 change. Hardik misses out and Jadeja comes in place of him.”

Mashrafe Mortaza:

“We would have batted on this wicket. It is a very important match. Hopefully we will play well. Mushy comes in and Mustafizur too.”

Preview:

Going by the current form as well as history and stats, India will be the firm favourites to win this game. The six-time Asia Cup-winners are entering this contest on the back of a thumping win over Pakistan. Right from the first over till the winning runs, India throughly dominated the contest to prove their big title-credentials. The bowlers bowled out Pakistan for just 162 before the batsmen did their task with utmost ease as India won the game by 8 wickets.

On the other hand, Bangladesh are entering this contest on the back of a demoralising defeat at the hands of Afghanistan. They first conceded 97 runs in the last ten overs Bangladesh to get a target of 256. In reply, they were all out for just 119.  What can further hurt the Tigers is the tight schedule. They are taking on India just a day after the heavy loss against Afghanistan. India, on the other side, had a good one day rest and are playing at the same venue where they beat Pakistan.

But then again, form and stats count for little on somedays and India should guard against complacency especially against a side which knows how to spring a surprise or two every now and then. India will also have to think of a new team-composition after losing Hardik Pandya to injury.

This fixture has rarely disappointed in recent times and one can expect a high-voltage clash once again.

Playing elevens:

India:

Rohit Sharma(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni(w), Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

Bangladesh:

Liton Das(w), Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mithun, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman