#CWC15: India face tricky Bangladesh in quarter-final

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  • Going up: MS Dhoni has mastered the art of ODI cricket, leading India to 10 consecutive World Cup wins.

    Team India’s win over Zimbabwe was not a walkover as seen in other games with MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina were made to dig deep early on and fire up towards the end to remain unbeaten in the group stages. Coming in at 92/4 in the 23rd over, the duo stitched a record unbeaten 196-run stand in 26 overs, which included a rare but crucial century for Raina and Dhoni seems to have mastered the art of chasing. In 141 matches batting second, India has won 82 times with Dhoni remaining not out on 38 occasions at an average of 109.19.

    With 8 balls to spare, this chase was indeed a close shave for the batting line-up which had been successful so far in the tournament. The departing Brendan Taylor was a class apart in that Zimbabwean side but for India there were other concerns creeping in ahead of the crucial knockout stage. India’s spin duo R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja recorded 146/1 together in their 20-over spell, the highest in the tournament and although the pacers conceded early on, they managed to hit the brakes hard in the death overs, restricting Zimbabwe below 300.

    The Men in Blue are about to face tougher oppositions compared to UAE and Zimbabwe with meaner and tighter bowling attacks which means tougher times ahead for the top-order batsmen. India’s opening stand reads 34, 9, 29, 11, 174 and 11 and apart from that 174 against Ireland, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma have not turned up together, leaving it for the top and middle-order to bat through the innings. Dhawan has been in scintillating form scoring 337 runs at an average of 56.16 and striking at 94.13, but with scores of 15, 0, 57*, 7, 64 and 16, Rohit is the culprit.

    Having dominated proceedings on at least 5 occasions, a few of players were hardly scrutinized for their below-par performance. Dhoni bailed out India yet again after the top-order failed to provide the much-needed start to chase down targets against mediocre bowling attacks. Victories over regular Test-playing nations like South Africa and Pakistan were overshadowed by their performance against Zimbabwe, which ended up being their biggest challenge in the group stage. Surely, teams will take notice of India’s lacklustre performance and target specific players in the remainder of the tournament.

    Roaring Tigers

    Taskin Ahmed has been one of Bangladesh's main threats with the ball and took a vital wicket against England.

    Their next opponent, Bangladesh, who knocked England out and put up a spirited performance against co-hosts New Zealand, are oozing with confidence having gone through maladministration and match-fixing allegations prior to the World Cup. In terms of age, Bangladesh’s side is the youngest in the tournament with several talents namely Mahmadullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Soumya Sarkar and Taskin Ahmed.

    The washed-out game against Australia was a stroke of luck providing them a crucial point and against Scotland, they achieved their highest-ever ODI run chase. England’s struggles were noticeable and a place in the quarter-finals beckoned for the Tigers, which they eventually reached following a tense battle at the Adelaide Oval. The run of remarkable wins sparked speculations of an unlikely upset against the Kiwis, but the narrow defeat won’t deteriorate their competitive spirit.

    Now, Bangladesh will shift all their focus on the defending champions when they lock-horns at the MCG on Thursday, 19th March. The Tigers have little to lose considering they have handled every obstacle and improved in all aspects of the game. Mahmudullah’s second century in a row led to another all-round batting performance and the sustained intensity of their bowling and fielding ability in the last two games will only boost their confidence against India.

    Mahmudullah’s average of 86 is the second highest in the tournament after Kumar Sangakkara’s 124 and his aggregate of 344 runs is the fifth highest and also the best for Bangladesh in a World Cup – the previous highest before this tournament was Mohammad Ashraful’s 216 in nine innings in 2007.

    India vs Bangladesh

    Their head-to-head record in World Cups is 1-1. The Tigers played a key role in eliminating the reigning World Champions during the 2007 edition in West Indies, but India hit back with a thumping victory in 2011. Overall in 28 matches played since 1988, India won 23, lost 3 with one no result. India’s most recent loss came exactly 3 years ago on 16th March 2012 during the Asia Cup in Dhaka, the same match in which Sachin Tendulkar famously scored his historic 100th international hundred.

    Their quarter-final clash will be the first-ever meeting on Australian soil but Dhoni’s men will be more comfortable playing under such conditions and atmosphere, which will be electrifying with a sea of blue supporters across the MCG. India’s batsmen delivered in patches but were up to the task whenever needed, while their bowlers have been outstanding claiming all 60 wickets in 6 league matches.

    However, Dhoni’s men will be wary of Bangladesh’s fearless approach in this one-off game, which is their first-ever World Cup quarter-final. Their batting has seen depth and experience with Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan forming the core in the middle-order and their bowlers contributed equally, restricting England and choking the Kiwis with swing and spin variations. The strong family-like bond between players and the enthusiasm in the side can topple any world class team, but in the end it will come down to minor adjustments and key decision-making during crunch situations on the field. 

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