Strikeforce: Bangladesh and Mustafizur would hope to rattle India’s top-order with some quick wickets.
| Photo Credit: DEEPAK KR

 Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha was wary of the fresh pitch at the MCA Stadium for the match against India leaning towards another feast for the batters. His team’s batters have had two poor outings in succession, failing to cross the 250-run mark against England and the Kiwis.

“This is the best batting wicket we have come across so far. Even the practice wickets were similar, really good. We haven’t put up a complete batting performance or, for that matter, a complete performance with bat and ball. But we know that we can beat big teams if we play to our potential,” he said.

The Tigers have enjoyed a 3-1 record over India in ODIs since December 2022, including a win in the recent Asia Cup, but Hathurusingha downplayed any advantages on the high-pressure stage.

“We have had success recently against India, but it’s a completely different game at the World Cup. If they slip-up and we play to our potential, I think we will have a good match,” he added.

Bangladesh’s opening pair has also come cropper, with seven pairs being used since January 2023. No pair has managed a 100-plus stand for the first wicket since Litton Das and Tamim Iqbal in May. When asked if the team was missing the services of the veteran Tamim, the head coach said: “He was not ready at the time of selection. His record as a player is good. But at the same time, I don’t know if we are missing him or not, because we have players here whom we trust to do the job for us.”

While Hathurusingha admitted that the Tigers could rearrange its bowling lineup on a flat surface, he also conceded that the host has looked menacing, having hit its straps early with three wins. “They have good strike bowlers. (Jasprit) Bumrah is back to his best. They have experienced spinners in the middle-overs and their batting, especially the top-order, is firing. It’s scary the way they are playing without fear and it looks like they are enjoying their cricket at the moment,” he remarked.

India’s Shubman Gill during a practice session at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
| Photo Credit: DEEPAK KR

“It takes one day,” is the theme of the current World Cup. Across venues, these words leap from ICC banners. Perhaps it is the unspoken motto within the teams as fortunes get altered and a new dawn is embraced. True to that spirit, Afghanistan and the Netherlands ambushed England and South Africa respectively because all it takes is just one day.

However, if one team has retained its rich vein of form so far in this championship, it has to be India. With three wins on the trot, the Men in Blue have been on an upward climb even if the peak of lifting the World Cup remains an evolving dream. A familiar rival awaits India in the match at the MCA Stadium here on Thursday. Bangladesh, a neighbour with a long border and a shared love for Bengali and riverine fishes like the hilsa, has hurt India in the past.

The two distinct banana peels for India were the matches in the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies and the 2012 Asia Cup in Dhaka. The first loss saw India crashing out of the premier tournament and the then distraught skipper Rahul Dravid is now the coach while the second defeat ruined Sachin Tendulkar’s special night after he had registered his 100th international hundred. Recently, Bangladesh overcame India with a six-run win in the Asia Cup joust in Colombo on Sept. 15.

Yet, India would fancy its chances while being guarded. Rohit Sharma’s men have ticked most boxes with the batting and bowling arms being in sync. Runs posted, wickets claimed and catches taken, cricket’s elementary nuances have all been seemingly mastered by the host even if these are early days for a long-winding tournament. While the playing eleven seems set, it remains to be seen if Mohammed Shami or R. Ashwin get a toe-in, a prospect that bowling coach Paras Mhambrey did not commit upon in the pre-game media interaction.

On match-eve, a warm sun beat down on the grass and India would hope that its strategies remain efficient and the game would be as easy as dunking this city’s favourite Shrewsbury cookies into a cup of tea. Obviously, Bangladesh will have other plans.

The old duo of skipper Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim may be the fulcrum but there are fitness concerns around the former, which he partially allayed with a stint in the nets on Tuesday. However, a final call on the Bangladeshi skipper’s availability will be taken on Thursday morning.

Having lost two out of three tussles in this World Cup, the visitors have to lift their game. Bangladesh does know a trick or two about cutting down the Big Brother to size, starting from 2007. India, though, would prefer to stay imposing, like the rolling hills around the venue.

The teams (from):

India: Rohit Sharma (Capt.), K.L. Rahul (wk), Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav.

Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan (Capt.), Najmul Hossain, Litton Das, Towhid Hridoy, Tanzid Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mahmudullah, Mahedi Hasan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Nasum Ahmed and Tanzim Hasan Sakib.

Umpires: Adrian Holdstock and Richard Kettleborough; Third umpire: Kumar Dharmasena; Match referee: Andrew Pycroft.

Match starts at 2 p.m.