PUNE (Dunya News) – A disciplined batting display helped India beat Bangladesh by seven wickets in a group stage match of World Cup 2023 in Pune on Thursday.
Team Blue took a rapid start with opening pair Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill jointly hitting 63 without loss int the first powerplay.
Hasan Mahmud helped relieve some of the pressure when he dismissed the Indian skipper just short of a half-century, with Rohit caught for 48.
But Kohli’s arrival did not slow the scoring as the number three batsman slammed early boundaries to maintain the momentum. Gill was departed for 53 followed by a quick wicket of Shreyas Iyer (19).
At this point, KL Rahul joined in-form Kohli on the crease with pair building a healthy partnership. Kohli made unbeaten century to clinch dominating win for his side in 42nd over.
Earlier, Bangladesh set 257 runs target for the hosts. Openers Litton Das and Tanzid Tamim picked up the pace after a careful start as they made 61 and 51, respectively. They scored 10 runs off the first five overs, before taking on Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj over the next three overs, and garnering 27 runs off them.
Kuldeep Yadav struck first to trap Tanzid lbw in the 15th over. It was Ravindra Jadeja's turn to provide the next blow, and he got skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto leg before in the 20th over.
Mehidy fell to a brilliant catch from KL Rahul in the 25th over. India managed to push through a number of low-scoring overs, before Mushfiqur Rahim tried to boost the total. It was Bumrah who dismissed Rahim for 38, restricting the opponents from building a big total.
Tawhid Hridoy went for 16 while Mahmudullah Riyad from tail order regained momentum for the team and played a knock of 48 runs that helped his side post a reasonable total.
Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Ravindra Jadeja took two wickets each.
Earlier, the Tigers won the toss and elect to bat first.
Pre-match coverage
India head into the game looking to extend their perfect record in this tournament to four wins out of four.
Bangladesh, by contrast, have lost their last two matches after starting the World Cup with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan.
India captain Rohit Sharma has already scored over 200 runs in three matches, with paceman Jasprit Bumrah taking eight wickets at a miserly average of just over 10.
"They (India) have every area covered," Hathurusingha told a pre-match press conference on Wednesday.
"They have strike bowlers up front and Bumrah has almost come (back) to his best.
"They have good, experienced spinners for the middle overs, their top-order is firing. They are scary."
Bangladesh may have had a faltering start to the World Cup, but they defeated India 2-1 on home soil in a one-day international series last year and enjoyed a six-run success against them during last month's Asia Cup in Colombo.
"We had success in the recent past against India but it is a different ball-game in the World Cup," insisted Hathurusingha.
"We are hoping to have a complete performance."
'INSPIRED'
The former Sri Lanka batsman took heart from the way Afghanistan had already overpowered defending champions England at this World Cup, with non-Test nation the Netherlands defeating South Africa as well.
"We are all motivated to win every game from now on," he said.
"Because of what happened in the last week, the World Cup is really opening up. We are all inspired by that. We have six games to go, we still think we can win those games."
But Bangladesh's task could become significantly more difficult if skipper Shakib Al Hasan is ruled out, with the star all-rounder set to have a fitness test just hours before Thursday's match.
Shakib, 36 is battling to overcome a thigh injury suffered during Friday's eight-wicket loss to New Zealand in Chennai.
Now in his fifth World Cup, he scored 40 then completed a return of 1-54 with his left-arm spin before hobbling off the field.
"He (Shakib) had a good batting session yesterday," said Hathurusingha. "He did a bit of running between the wickets as well.
"We are waiting for the result of the scan we did today.
"We haven't tried his bowling yet. We will assess him tomorrow morning, and make a decision.
"If he is not ready to play, we won't risk it. If he is ready, there's a chance of him playing."
But he later suggested Shakib would have some input into the decision as well following a "green or red light" from medical staff.
"If they think it is not risky, the player is given the choice of playing the game or not," Hathurusingha said.
"It comes to the captain and coach whether they want the player or not and if he is wanted in one or both disciplines."
Squads
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav.
Bangladesh squad: Shakib Al Hasan (c), Litton Kumer Das, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Najmul Hossain Shanto (vc), Tawhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Nasum Ahmed, Shak Mahedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Hasan Mahmud, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib.