India won their sixth Asia Cup, defeating Bangladesh at Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur by eight wickets, Sunday. After such a fantastic win, captain MS Dhoni believes India are ready for World T20, which is set to start from March 8 in India.
However, their triumph over Bangladesh was not an easy one as they had to depend on their skipper, Dhoni to finish the innings, after some solid batting by Virat Kohli, who scored 41 not out and Shikhar Dhawan (60). The captain did not disappoint with some incredible hitting to silence the Bangladesh fans, who were looking for their first Asia Cup triumph.
Bangaldesh, batting first, put up a good total of 120 runs in their alloted 15 overs, but India, who have always been a strong chasing side, played brilliantly to chase down the target in 13.5 overs. The rain-affected game was reduced to 15 overs-a-side.
Though Bangladesh might not have won the title, they have plenty of confidence and pride to take from the tournament. Bangladesh defeated Pakistan and Sri Lanka to reach the Asia Cup final, which should do their confidence a world of good with the World T20 round the corner as well.
Bangladesh were outplayed by a side – India -- who are playing some amazing cricket at present. With such victory under their belt, India are huge favourites to win the World T20 as well. Their form have been extraordinary in 2016, defeating teams such as Australia and Sri Lanka in their last two series and now add to it – the Asia Cup.
Dhoni gave credit to the top order of India, who have won a number of matches for India as was also witnessed in the final where Kohli and Shikhar were involved in a huge partnership of 94 runs to help India inch closer to the target.
"The top-order batsmen, they have done the bulk of the job, the lower order batsmen just go and do what is needed after that. It's looking very good now, we are on track for the World T20," Dhoni said during the presentation ceremony.
The skipper also praised Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya for their performances of late. The duo has added another dimension to the India team. In Bumrah, India have found an exceptional bowler, who can bowl consistent yorkers at the death, which India lacked in the past while Padnya with his all-round skills has become a key player for India.
"Jasprit, the beauty is that he can bowl yorkers, if you don't have the yorker you have to try a lot of other deliveries. His slightly different action also helps him a bit. Hardik can bowl a few overs for us, so he can give us four in T20s. With his batting and fielding, he is a great package," Dhoni said.
One look at the squad reflects India as a well-balanced team and if they play to their potential, no team can defeat India in the World T20 as well.
