India have shown they are capable of shutting out the outside forces and carrying on with their jobs in the middle to great effect before, chiefly when they won the ICC Champions Trophy in England last year. With trials and tribulations aplenty back home, India will again look to drown out the noise and continue their impressive run in the ICC World T20, when they take on hosts Bangladesh in a Group 2 match in Mirpur.
[Read the report HERE]
Bowling was supposed to be India's weakness heading into the T20 World Cup, but the first two matches have suggested otherwise, with the fast bowlers and especially the spinners coming to the fore in grand fashion.
Amit Mishra has been one of the best bowlers in the tournament so far, spinning the proverbial webs around the batsmen, and walking away with two man of the match awards.
The two wins for India have been pretty comprehensive and indeed easy, with the bowlers doing their jobs up front and allowing the batsmen to take the team home. However, in both games, India had a chance to finish off the game quicker than they did, with the win over Pakistan coming with nine balls to spare, while the West Indies victory was secured in just the 118th ball of the innings, despite chasing a mere 130.
Net run rates invariably come into play in this short, you-lose-one-game-and-you-could-be-out format, and India could be made to pay for those mistakes later on in the tournament. However, they could virtually seal a semifinal spot at the end of Friday night, if West Indies beat Australia in the early game, and India top Bangladesh later on.
"We're not looking too far ahead because it's a long way to go," said India opener Rohit Sharma, who appeared before the press, with skipper MS Dhoni deciding to keep a low profile.
"We've not worried so much about run-rates in the previous two games and batting second has not been easy because the ball did not come on to the bat well. That's why we played out so many overs in completing our wins.
"We will take this as another game. The approach definitely won't change. It will be an important game playing against Bangladesh. They will get a lot of support over here. Crowds get behind them here. It will be a good game. We have to be at our best to win the match."
Where to Watch Live:
ICC World T20 2014: India vs Bangladesh Live TV and Streaming Information (Match starts 7.30 pm local time, 7 pm IST, 9.30 am ET, 1.30 pm GMT)
| Country | TV Broadcaster |
| India | Star Sports 1, Star Sports 3, Star Sports HD1, Doordarshan |
| US and Latin America | ESPN |
| Canada | Sportsnet |
| UK and Ireland | Sky Sports |
| Middle East and North Africa | OSN Sport Cricket |
| Australia | Fox Sports |
| Sub Saharan Africa & South Africa | SuperSport |
| New Zealand | Sky Sport |
| Europe | EuroSport |
| Pakistan | PTV and Ten Sports |
| Sri Lanka | CSN |
| Bangladesh | Bangladesh TV, Maasranga TV and Gazi TV |
| Country | Live Streaming Information |
| India | HERE |
| US | HERE |
| UK | HERE |
| Middle East | HERE |
| Canada | HERE or HERE |
| Australia | HERE |
| South Africa & Sub Saharan Africa | HERE |
| Latin America | HERE |
| New Zealand | HERE |
| Europe | HERE |
| Pakistan | HERE or HERE |
| Sri Lanka | HERE |
Bangladesh are having a miserable World T20. Being the hosts, much was expected from them, but apart from that opening thumping win over Afghanistan, it has all been downhill for the home side.
The loss to Hong Kong was unexpected and morale-sapping, with the batsmen failing to put up any kind of fight against the West Indies in their opening match of the main draw.
"Our batsmen couldn't start well in the last game," Bangladesh bowler Mashrafe Mortaza said on Thursday. "The middle order and the lower order also didn't score many. They are trying, no doubt about that. Everyone has their plans.
"We plan to start well tomorrow, to ensure we have a set batsman at the crease. At the moment, everything seems to be difficult. I feel that if we can start well tomorrow, it will be easier for us. We lost wickets early against West Indies and Hong Kong. I still believe that our batsmen can dominate top-class attacks."
Team news: India: No changes seem necessary in the bowling department with the three spinners plan working perfectly. However, in the batting side, Yuvraj Singh's place is under threat. The left-hander took ages to creep India towards the target against WI, before falling at the last minute, while going early against Pakistan. Ajinkya Rahane has shown good form of late and is a good bet in the T20 format. But it looks likely that Yuvraj will keep his place, for one more game at least.
Bangladesh: The home side made plenty of changes against the West Indies, but still fell short by a big margin. The fielding was abysmal, while the batsmen did not raise their hands. Nasir Hossain, who was surprisingly dropped against the Windies, is likely to come back in, while a late call will be taken on Mortaza's fitness.
Key men: India: The openers - Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan have not quite sparkled at the top, giving India those wonderful starts in the first six overs. If Rohit and Dhawan can set a nice platform, then it will open India up for a big total, particularly if they are batting first.
Bangladesh: Shakib Al Hasan is the obvious choice, but the spinners also need to come to the fore, while skipper Mushfiqur Rahim's capabilities with the bat will also be welcomed.
Expected lineups: India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Amit Mishra.
Bangladesh: Anamul Haque, Tamim Iqbal, Mominul Haque, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Shamsur Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Mahmudullah, Mashrafe Mortaza, Sohag Gazi, Al-Amin Hossain.
