Cyclone Maha Threat Looms Large Over Second India-Bangladesh T20I

India were stunned by Bangladesh in the first T20I in Delhi. While India were the favourites for the clash, the visitors came up with a dominant display to beat their fancied opponents and draw the first blood in the series. In the process, Bangladesh also registered their first-ever T20I win over India after losing eight games in a row.

Asked to bat first, India recovered from a shaky start to post a challenging total of 148 for 6 in the allotted 20 overs. The hosts were off to a poor start as their skipper Rohit Sharma departed in the very first over.

Shikhar Dhawan top-scored with 41 while Rishabh Pant scored 27 from 26. The likes of Shreyas Iyer, Krunal Pandya and Washington Sundar also played handy knocks. For Bangladesh, Shafiul Islam and Aminul Islam picked up two wickets apiece.

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In reply, Bangladesh chased down the total with three balls remaining. Senior batsman Mushfiqur Rahim starred with the bat, scoring an unbeaten 60. In the 19th over, Rahim hit four consecutive fours to all but put the game to the bed before skipper Mahmudullah hit a six to take the team over the line.

India will now be desperate to bounce back in the second T20I. Rajkot will host the crucial game on November 7. However, the hosts’ hopes could be dashed by the current weather condition in Gujarat. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on November 3 that Cyclonic storm “Maha” is likely to bring very heavy rainfall in the western part of the country.

And now, with a game in Rajkot ahead, news of a cyclone on the West coast on Nov 06/07 with a danger alert issued to fishermen on the Saurashtra coast. Hope it isn't dangerous for the people living there. The weather has been most unpredictable this year.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) November 4, 2019

IMD’s Ahmedabad centre has said that Cyclone Maha will make landfall in Gujarat between Dwarka and Diu on the night of November 6 and that it will bring heavy to very heavy rainfall till the next day there. Cyclone Maha will bring extremely heavy rainfall to Saurashtra and Gujarat over the next few days and it would not be very surprising if Rajkot T20Is gets washed out.