India v Bangladesh World T20 – 5 Talking Points

the Indians had a more uphill task in hand. India not only needed to win but win it handsomely to enhance their net run rate and the chances of making it to the semis.

Having won the toss, Bangladesh put India in to bat. They had a decent start with openers giving a solid start. India openers put on 42 in the powerplay but lost both openers in quick succession. Kohli had a start but couldn’t convert it to a big fifty today. Raina looked good for his 30 and so did Pandya for his 7 ball 15. Wickets of Pandya and Raina on consecutive deliveries by Al-Amin gave India a major setback in the final overs. Neither Dhoni nor Yuvraj could finish it big and India were restricted to 146/7 in 20 overs.

Bangladesh’s run chase began in sloppy manner as Mithun was dismissed for just 1. Tamim Iqbal and Sabbir Rahman provided the scare to take the game away from India but Indian spinners came back strong. Mahmudullah and Sarkar hit a few strong shots but that wasn’t enough as good two overs towards the end by Indian bowlers saw India home by 1 run and win an absolute cliffhanger.

1. Poor Indian batting:

The Bangalore wicket is known to be a run-scoring ground but Indian batsmen found it a hard time batting first. Despite a decent start, no batsmen looked settled at the crease. Dhawan struggled for his 22-ball 23. Even Kohli wasn’t at his best and could manage a run-a-ball 24. Suresh Raina was lucky to be dropped early in the innings but failed to maximize his good luck. Dhoni failed to make the final move and couldn’t hit the long ball like he usually does and is known to do. Yuvraj Singh had a chance to take India to a high total but perished soon. The Indians could manage just 146 on the board, which certainly was a below par score.

2. Bangladesh scare and Dhoni’s glove work:

When Tamim Iqbal and Sabbir Rahman were at the crease, the required rate was brought down to less than 7 per over. They definitely made it look like a tough work for India and nothing seemed to go their way. Even mishits by Sabbir were taking the fence and runs kept coming. It took a very smart piece of keeping by MS Dhoni to get rid of Sabbir Rahman. The trouble seemed to have sided for a brief moment but Mahmudullah, Shakib and Sarkar gave brief resistances and definitely a scare to Indian bowlers and the fans. Lusty blows kept coming and India were surely out of the game for a while towards the end.

3. Sloppy fielding:

Jasprit Bumrah had a horrid day at the office as he started off with a misfield that went for a boundary. Things worsened for the fast bowler as he dropped a sitter off the bowling of Ashwin of TamimIqbal. Tamim at that moment of time was looking threatening. Bumrah wasn’t the only man to have missed the catch. Later, Ashwin dropped a relatively easy catch off Shakib in the covers. Skipper MS Dhoni let the ball slip out of hand in the final overs and dropped a catch too. If that wasn’t enough, an overthrow by Pandya early in the innings was a precursor of things to come. Too many loose fielding and wobbly efforts saw Bangladesh cash in with a lot of singles and doubles.

4. Final overs:

With 17 needed off the last two and Mahmudullah and Rahim at the crease, the game was as good as gone for India. But Bumrah, who had a very poor outing in the field and with the ball prior to the penultimate over, bowled with guile and precision to leak away just 6 runs in the 19th over. With no more bowling options remaining, Dhoni had to switch to Pandya for the last over. The young man looked tense and all players had a word of advice for Pandya. Needing 11 off the last over, Pandya gave away just 9 as India won by 1 run. Starting off, Pandya gave a single and it was a strong hit by Rahim that followed and went for a four. The next delivery saw yet another wicket fall and the equation was down to 2 needed off 3 balls. What followed was an absolute treat for cricket fans. Pandya dismissed Rahim and Mahmudullah to get the equation down to 2 needed in 1 ball. But MS Dhoni run out Rahman to help India win by a run.

5. Nehra’s advice and Dhoni finished off in style!

The last over was a pressure game for HardikPandya. During the course of the over, one man was seen calming down the young man and that was Ashish Nehra. The experienced bowler had his stuff to share with Pandya and all his suggestions seemed to work. Pandya was taken down for 2 fours in the last over and then Pandya picked up 2 wickets after a brief chat with AshishNehra. MS Dhoni was seen keeping with just one glove and the inners in the other for the last over. Dhoni was quick to run towards the wickets and knock the bails off to dismiss Rahman on the last ball of the thrilling encounter.