CT 2017, India V Bangladesh, Warm-Up Preview: India looking to identify their best combination against Asian neighbors

India participated in a 50-over game after a gap of four months when they took New Zealand on in their first warm-up game at the Kennington Oval in London. Their clash was a rain-truncated affair but Indian players got some much-needed practice ahead of their title defence. The venue for their second warm-up encounter against Bangladesh will be the Oval again and India will be hoping to get a full game this time around.

The focus of these warm-up clashes is to give as much practice as possible to ever member in the squad. True, that teams want to win every game they play but here, the essence is to give game-time to their players. India, though, will be wary of Bangladesh, who has played some good cricket in the last 6 months. A defeat against them won’t be ideal preparation ahead of their mouth-watering clash against Pakistan on Sunday.

The Indian bowlers had a great time against New Zealand the other day. Mohammed Shami made a rousing comeback to the ODI fold, picking up 3/47, all top order wickets when the Kiwis were on the rampage. Bhuvneshwar Kumar had an ideal shift from T20 to ODI cricket as well as he ended with an impressive 3/28. All-rounder and No. 1 Test bowler Ravindra Jadeja got 2/8 in four overs. Ashwin and Umesh Yadav too had a few overs under their belt before the Kiwis were all out for a paltry 189.

India needs to identify the right combination going into the eight-nation tournament which commences on June 1. They have a lot of fine fast bowlers in their arsenal but can play just three out of them. The evolution of Hardik Pandya has eased out things a little as he is capable of playing the bowling all-rounder’s role.

The batting looks great. Yuvraj Singh, who is ill but is expected to be fit in time for India’s first game, will take the No. 4 slot. Skipper Kohli, Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav will occupy the rest of the batting slots in the middle order. Rohit Sharma will participate in tomorrow’s game and is likely to open with Dhawan which means Rahane will miss out.

Bangladesh have already been in England for a few weeks. They played a tri-series in Ireland followed by a warm-up clash against Pakistan, which they lost in the last over. Apart from the result, Bangladesh had a decent preparation going into the ICC Championship Trophy, a tournament which they last featured in 2006. They will again look to get as much practice as possible before they take on hosts England in the tournament’s curtain-raiser on Thursday.

Toss: Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bowl first

Captains speak

Shakib Al Hasan: We would like to field first. We would like to chase. It seems to be a used wicket. The wicket might be slightly slow. The main tournament is coming up. So, some of our key players having a rest.

Virat Kohli: We would like to try out to bat first today, The conditions matter here. Few of our batters got runs. We would try out the rest and see how it goes. The conditions overcast matter a lot. If it gets cloudy, it is difficult for the batters. If there is sun shine, it is flat. Yuvi is fit and back in the nets. He may or may not bat, but Rohit will surely bat.

Teams

India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli(C), Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni (WK), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ajinkya Rahane

Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan (C), Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Mehedi Hasan, Sunzamul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shafiul Islam and Taskin Ahmed

Rested: Mashrafe Mortaza

Focus will be on:

Rohit Sharma

The explosive opener hasn’t played for India since October 2016. He sustained a thigh injury which kept him away from the game for a good 5 months. He made a comeback in the IPL, where he led Mumbai Indians to their third title win. His own form wasn’t exactly great but he got a couple of good knocks under his belt to get some confidence going ahead in the Champions Trophy. He will look to spend some time in the middle in tomorrow’s clash against Bangladesh to rediscover some rhythm ahead of the big tournament. An in-form Rohit will boost the Indian team ahead of their tournament’s opening game against Pakistan.

Shakib Al Hasan

After a sedate start in his side’s first warm-up game, Shakib needs to get into some form for he is indispensable for Bangladesh. Shakib was strangely left out of all but one game during the IPL where he plays for KKR hence he needs some valuable game time ahead of the CT. He plays the dual role of being a reliable middle order batsman and an outstanding left-arm spinner. He can also offer valuable advice to the skipper as he is one guy who knows the game inside out.

Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin took a two months rest and played his first game against New Zealand after the gruelling home Test season. He bowled just 6 overs and gave away 32 runs beside taking a wicket. Ashwin is crucial to India’s title defence as he is a bowler who does a fantastic job in the middle overs and picks wickets in the slog overs. He needs to get the maximum out of this clash against Bangladesh to be ready in time for his second Champions Trophy.

Team Combination

India

Yuvraj Singh, who fell ill and did not participate in the first warm-up, is expected to give this game a miss again, though the BCCI has declared him fit and ready for the tournament. Apart from him, all 14 players are expected to take part in this game. Rahane might not get much time in the middle as Rohit will open the innings with Dhawan. The team management might bat Rahane at 4 instead of Dinesh Karthik. Jadhav will be given a go to bat as well as he is a crucial member in the middle order. The fast bowlers will yet again look to bowl as many overs possible as they are also jostling for places amongst themselves. Only two out of Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar is expected to play in the Pakistan game as the think-tank will pick Hardik Pandya as the third medium pacer.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a settled ODI side and has played some remarkable cricket post the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. In Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes, they have a sound top order which is capable of taking the attack to the bowling team. Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib and Mahmudullah form a very decent middle order with a lot of experience between them. The bowling unit is led by skipper Mashrafe Mortaza and Taskin Ahmed. Young Mehedi Hasan takes care of the spin department along with the canny Shakib Al Hasan. All in all, Bangladesh is a dangerous one-day unit and can win games against top sides on their day.

Where to watch?

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