3 things India need to do right to beat Bangladesh in 2024 T20 World Cup clash
Team India will face Bangladesh in the Super 8 stage of the 2024 T20 World Cup at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Saturday, June 22. The Men in Blue are unbeaten, and recently defeated Afghanistan at Kensington Oval in Barbados to keep the momentum flowing.
Bangladesh, however, come into the contest with a desperate need for a win. Their first Super 8 round clash against Australia in Antigua ended in a comprehensive loss, and another loss could see their elimination almost confirmed.
Team India took a little while to adjust to the Caribbean conditions after playing out the group stage in the United States of America (USA). However, after settling in, they looked at ease, and will be hoping for a similar clinical performance without any major hiccups to have one foot in the knockouts.
On that note, let us take a look at three things India need to do right to beat Bangladesh in the 2024 T20 World Cup Super 8 clash.
#1 Shivam Dube must maximize his best opportunity
Team India's sparkling unbeaten run has a slight blemish in the form of Shivam Dube. The all-rounder has looked completely lost so far in alien conditions, and has not been able to play his role so far. Even with the security that the current Indian management places in players, one has to admit that Dube does not have much rope to cling to, and the do-or-die alarm bells have started to ring.
A much more batting-friendly strip in Antigua, a bowling attack rife with spinners might be the avenue that Dube needs to finally come through in this tournament. Dube has a massive upper hand, at least on paper, against the likes of Shakib Al Hasan and Rishad Hossain.
Dube was trapped against Noor Ahmad and Rashid Khan on a difficult surface last time around, but with a bit more assistance expected for batters, he should not face too much trouble, compared to what he has faced so far in this tournament. However, on the flip side, the Bangladeshi spinners are also in good touch, and will be aware of Dube's threat.
#2 Go all out against the fragile Bangladesh top-order
Bangladesh's weakest link in the side might be their top-order which has just not fired this tournament. They have already tried out a myriad of combinations involving Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, skipper Najmul Hossain himself, and Litton Das, and none have landed so far.
The Indian pace bowling attack, which has been ruthless so far, will be looking forward to having a go against the fragile top order. Bumrah with the new ball along with Arshdeep Singh, and perhaps even Axar Patel in the powerplay will have the task of exposing the middle order as soon as possible.
Early wickets will also force Bangladesh to be cautious and conservative in the middle overs, which plays right into Team India's hands. The latter even have Hardik Pandya if Rohit Sharma needs to shake things up in the phase.
The conditions are near-perfect for the all-rounder to operate with his cutters and his ability to hit the deck hard. Although his services as a third seamer may not be needed in the Caribbean as it did in the USA, but he is still a go-to option.
#3 Jadeja and Axar must completely have control over the middle overs
With India likely to stick to the three-spinner plan, particularly after how well it worked out against Afghanistan, they will play a huge role in the middle overs. Even a couple of tight overs in tandem, which both Jadeja and Axar are well capable of, will put a lot of pressure on Bangladesh.
They do not have the luxury of batting too deep, and have to bank on Shakib and Mahmudullah's experience and Hridoy's form to escape a tough battle. In addition to Axar and Jadeja's relentless pressure, Bangladesh also have Kuldeep Yadav to deal with in the middle overs.
Bangladesh do have Najmul and Shakib as left-handed batters to counter Axar and Jadeja's threat to an extent, but that is almost nullified with Kuldeep operating from the other end.