Birmingham(June 15, 2017): India lead Bangladesh 5-1 in the ICC events but Virat Kohli’s team will not underestimate the Tigers when the two sides renew their rivalry in the semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy in Birmingham today.
India captain Kohli is not taking Bangladesh lightly given their opposition’s recent history in world cricket. The Mashrafe Mortaza-led side has improved dramatically over the past few years and are now one game away from reaching their first-ever final at an ICC event.
“We are playing the semi-finals for the first time but I think that India will feel more pressure that us. The burden of expectation is more on India as they have more people. But back home, people are expecting a lot from us as well. Whichever team manages to play better will win the match,” said Mortaza.
The Bangladesh pace bowlers will have their task cut out against an in form Indian top order and the likes of Taskin and Rubel were seen bowling on the practice wicket under the watchful eyes of bowling coach Courtney Walsh. Whether Walsh’s experience can guide the young pacers to come up with the goods against India is something that remains to be seen.
After defeating South Africa in a comfortable fashion on Sunday, defending champions India will take on Bangladesh in the second ICC Champions Trophy semi-final on Thursday with odds in favour of Virat Kohli’s men to go through to the last stage.
However, it may not be as easy as it looks on paper as Bangladesh have pulled off upsets and have shrugged off the ‘minnows’ tag in the recent past. As the defending champions gear up for a tricky fixture against the Mashrafe Mortaza-led side, HT looks at the strengths and weaknesses of India.
India Squad:
V Kohli*, R Ashwin, JJ Bumrah, S Dhawan, MS Dhoni†, RA Jadeja, KM Jadhav, KD Karthik, B Kumar, Mohammed Shami, HH Pandya, AM Rahane, RG Sharma, UT Yadav, Yuvraj Singh
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