Rain was the party-pooper again as the elements won Day 3 of the Test match between India and Bangladesh. With India looking to put on a batting charge as wickets kept tumbling, rain came pouring down one final time to stop Virat Kohli's men at 462/6 in 103.3 overs.
Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane were the stars of the show on Day 3, but come Day 4, it will be up to the India bowlers. Shakib Al Hasan and Jubair Hossain, the left-arm spinner and the leggie, picked up all six wickets of the day, suggesting Harbhajan Singh and R Ashwin will be the key men for India on Saturday.
If the rain stays away long enough, of course, and assuming India will declare their innings overnight, quick wickets, will be the key. If one of Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma can get a couple of quick wickets and put the pressure on the Bangladesh batsmen, then Ashwin and Harbhajan an take charge.
Pressure is what creates opportunities – the Bangladesh bowlers were not disciplined enough to do that – and it will also be up to the opening bowlers to make a fast start from India's perspective, as Harbhajan, keen to make an impression in his comeback, and Ashwin do have the capabilities to run through a batting order in helpful conditions.
Bangladesh will know that this Test match is as near a draw as it can get, especially with more rain predicted over the next couple of days. So, the last thing they will want is to give the India bowlers hope by losing quick wickets early.
There will be a lot of pressure on the openers – Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes – to weather the new ball spell from the India fast bowlers and take the edge off the game; something the rain has done for everyone a fair bit already.
Spin vs the Bangladesh batsman should be the order of the day on Saturday, if, the rain stays away a little bit to at least keep some kind of interest in this Test match in Fatullah.
Where to Watch Live
Get the Day 4 Score Update HERE
Day 4 is scheduled for a 9.30 am local time (9 am IST, 4.30 am BST, 11.30 pm ET) start, providing rain stays away. The Live TV options for the India vs Bangladesh in India and the rest of the sub-continent are Star Sports1 and Star Sports3. Bangladesh vs India can also be watched live by viewers in Bangladesh on GTV. Day 4 of the Test match can also be watched via live streaming online on Starsports.com and Hotstar.
Viewers in the Middle East and North Africa can catch the action on OSN Sports Cricket, while the live stream option is on OSN Play.
Audience watching India vs Bangladesh in the US can flip their remots to Willow TV, while all the Day 4 action, whatever there will be of it, can also be live streamed on Willow TV Online.
