India vs Bangladesh, 3rd T20I - Preview: Momentum with the hosts as the Tigers chase history

Aminul Islam has been impressive for Bangladesh so far and the other bowlers should step up for them.

Published - 09 Nov 2019, 15:45 IST | Updated - 09 Nov 2019, 15:45 IST

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After having suffered a rare seven-wicket defeat in the opening fixture in Delhi, normal services once again resumed as Rohit Sharma’s masterclass at Rajkot, helped the Men in Blue to seek parity and set-up a decider at the Vidarbha Cricket Association in Nagpur. India may have won the second T20I but it did nothing to resolve their long-standing issues in the shortest format of the game.

That they decided to chase in the second game paved way for their perennial weakness to be subsided. It has become apparently clear that the Men in Blue love chasing. And, there is a reason for it. India’s template at the top of the innings in the recent past has been to reserve wickets before going all-out for the target. While that might work during the run-chase, it has seldom worked when they are setting-up a total.

Rohit Sharma knows it. He knows his numbers, his sides’ record while batting first. And it will be interesting to see whether he opts to bat first if they win the toss or India will go for a safer option, considering the series is on the line, as they did in Rajkot.

As for the Asian Tigers, they would feel that they missed out on a golden opportunity in the last game after their openers had provided them with a blistering start. The visitors’ woes against quality wrist-spin were exposed to the hilt once again while their bowling- especially fast bowling- was atrocious, to say the least.

Team Combination

India

Rohit Sharma’s whirlwind 85 in the last game once again masked the ‘Shikhar Dhawan’ sized problem at the top of the order. Dhawan has been out of touch for some time now and with KL Rahul breathing down his neck and Virat Kohli slated to return, this might just be career-defining innings for the southpaw as far as the shortest format of the game is concerned.

India would be tempted to include leg-spinner Rahul Chahar, considering Bangladesh’s perennial weakness and Shardul Thakur might come in for the struggling Khaleel Ahmed, who has had a forgettable two games thus far.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (C), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shivam Dube, Krunal Pandya/Rahul Chahar, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed/Shardul Thakur

Bench: Sanju Samson, Krunal Pandya/Rahul Chahar, Shardul Thakur/Khaleel Ahmed

Bangladesh

With the fast bowlers having struggled the way they did in the last game at Rajkot, there could be a case for the inclusion of bowling all-rounder Abu Hider Rony. The rest of the line-up should more-or-less the same which lost by 8 wickets in Rajkot. The leggie Aminul Islam has been impressive in the last two outings while Mohammad Naim has also shone with the bat opening the innings. More than any changes, Bangladesh needs a team effort in Nagpur.

Probable XI: Mohammad Naim, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mahmudullah (c), Mosaddek Hossain, Afif Hossain, Aminul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Shafiul Islam/Abu Hider Rony, Al-Amin Hossain

Bench: Abu Hider Rony/Shafiul Islam, Taijul Islam, Arafat Sunny, Mohammad Mithun

Focus will be on

Rishabh Pant (IND)

Whether it is his stroke selection or his untidy wicket-keeping skills, Pant is under considerable pressure and with Samson in the squad, this could be a crucial game for the southpaw. He made a grave mistake in the Rajkot T20I which could’ve cost India the game and the series but with the captain and management backing him to the hilt, Pant looks set to continue as the first-choice wicketkeeper.

Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh)

The Fizz hasn’t been at his best in the series. With him being the senior bowler, Bangladesh will hope he rises to the occasion in the decider. Rather India has neutralised him well and it remains to be seen how he pulls up for the decider.