"This wasn't a match but a mismatch" - Aakash Chopra on India's 'decimation' of Bangladesh in IND vs BAN 2024 1st T20I
Aakash Chopra has noted that India decimated Bangladesh in the first T20I in Gwalior on Sunday, October 6. He criticized the Bangla Tigers for playing 'sub-standard and extremely mediocre' cricket.
India bundled Bangladesh out for just 127 after Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and asked the visitors to bat first. The Men in Blue chased down the below-par target with seven wickets and 8.1 overs to spare to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra observed that India handed Bangladesh a thrashing.
"Decimate, dominate, they were disposed of. Bangladesh guys - what are you doing, what sort of cricket do you play? You didn't even come close. This wasn't a match but a mismatch. India have gone 1-0 ahead. Whoever bowled picked up wickets, and whoever had a bat in his hands hit," he said (0:01).
The former India opener compared Hardik Pandya's swag to that of Olympic fame Yusuf Dikec and noted that it reflected the hosts' dominance.
"Do you remember the Turkish shooter, who had a hand in his pocket in the Olympics? Hardik Pandya was also similar. What swag and attitude. That just defined everything for me. The way he played that (no-look) shot and stood there and looked (at the bowler), there was West Indian swag in that, and the team's swagger," Chopra elaborated.
Chopra added that all Indian batters played aggressively as Bangladesh didn't pose any challenges to them.
"There was actually one thing in that. The Indian team are playing like that because, sorry Bangladesh, due respect, but you are not challenging us. You are playing sub-standard cricket. You are playing extremely mediocre cricket. So when you start challenging yourself, you play cricket like this because whoever came, was hitting," he said.
Pandya top-scored for India with an unbeaten 16-ball 39, a knock studded with five fours and two sixes. Sanju Samson (29 off 19), Abhishek Sharma (16 off 7), Suryakumar Yadav (29 off 19) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (16* off 15) also took the Bangladesh attack to the cleaners.
"This team are the world champions and they played like world champions" - Aakash Chopra on Team India
![The Indian bowlers ran through the Bangladesh batting lineup. [P/C: BCCI]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/10/5e62c-17282718038872-1920.jpg?w=500)
In the same video, Aakash Chopra pointed out that India played like world champions while annihilating Bangladesh during the first T20I.
"This team are the world champions and they played like world champions. They showed Bangladesh the mirror, that you are the third-best or fourth-best team in Asia at the moment. The evolution and growth of your cricket was not seen at all. I am not just saying that one match has been like that," he said (1:30).
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that Najmul Hossain Shanto and company have been found wanting in the entire tour.
"If you see the entire tour, I just remember the two sessions in Chennai, but after that, it's been downhill only. You have lost every single day, every single encounter. In this match, the batting was reckless, careless and purposeless, and the lesser you talk about their bowling, the better it is," Chopra added.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz (35* off 32) and Shanto (27 off 25) were the only Bangladesh players to provide any resistance with the bat. Miraz and Mustafizur Rahman were the visitors' only bowlers to pick up a wicket, with Abhishek Sharma getting run out.