NEW DELHI: An India so powerful that, to be honest, Bangladesh has no idea how to match the “skills and mentality” of Suryakumar Yadav‘s guys.
The second T20 International between the two teams is scheduled to take place in New Delhi on Wednesday. The host team’s youthful players are likely to pose a serious threat to the visiting team’s full strength.
India has appeared to be every bit the invading power that enjoys intimidating on home soil, while Bangladesh has hardly looked like the resilient opponents that everyone has made them out to be.
Thus, despite the absence of important players like Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, and Jasprit Bumrah from the opening game in Gwalior, India’s extraordinary depth in white-ball cricket was evident as they won by a commanding seven wickets.
One man who made a strong statement of intent in that game on Sunday was Sanju Samson.
Since making his debut in 2015, Samson has been in and out of the national lineup, and his inconsistent play has been a significant contributing factor. Suryakumar confirmed Samson as the series’ starter.
In the series-opener in Gwalior, the keeper-batter, who usually comes in the middle order, revelled in his new role as opener and played some exquisite strokes in his 19-ball 29, demonstrating his ability to play freely in the powerplay.
He failed to convert his bright start, though, much like his opening partner Abhishek Sharma, who displayed incredible strength before getting run out.
Since Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal, the team’s first picks, were rested for this series, Samson and Sharma would both like to show that they are more than just cameo performers.
The two would try to take advantage of this situation and win big on Wednesday night in front of what is probably going to be a sold-out audience.
With Pant out of the picture, the 29-year-old Samson has more on the line in his quest to maintain his wicketkeeping position.
A string of reliable performances in both opening and wicketkeeping roles might position him as a serious contender for selections in the upcoming white-ball formats, even though the T20 World Cup is still two years away.
After all went well for India in the first game, the hosts are not likely to make any changes to their playing lineup.
Mayank Yadav, making his debut, wowed with his explosive pace, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, also making his debut, distinguished himself as an uncommon seam-bowling all-rounder in Indian cricket.
Arshdeep Singh led the pace attack expertly, and Varun Chakaravarthy, the mystery spinner, returned with a bang after a three-year absence from the national squad.
He, along with Washington Sundar, will be vying for the spin all-rounder position that Ravindra Jadeja left open.
However, if the tourists are to mount a comeback and survive the three-match series, they will need to regroup swiftly.
Bangladesh has the advantage of experience, having fielded essentially the same team as they did at the World Cup earlier this year, but they haven’t been able to adapt to the T20 format.
“I wouldn’t say we played badly. We are a better team than this. We haven’t done well in this format for a long time, but I don’t believe we are such a bad team,” captain Najmul Hossain Shanto conceded in Gwalior.
Their inability to bat effectively has persisted, therefore it was expected that they would struggle against India’s well-organized bowling attack.
Mahmuddullah and Liton Das, two experienced players, need to get their act together.
Although Bangladesh’s bowlers might be exciting, they will need to score a lot of runs to contend with India’s strong squad.
Squads:
India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tilak Varma, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Mayank Yadav
Bangladesh: Najmul Hossain Shanto (C), Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Parvez Hossain Emon, Tawhid Hridoy, Mahmud Ullah, Litton Kumer Das, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Rakibul Hasan