Nidahas Trophy 2018, India vs Bangladesh, Final: Hits and Misses

The final of the Nidahas Trophy was a tight and closely-contested encounter between India and Bangladesh. The Men in Blue managed to get one over their neighbors with a nailb-biting finish on the last delivery of the match and took it home with 4 wickets remaining.

Rohit Sharma won the toss and chose to bowl first. Riding on the back of a well-made half century from Sabbir Rahman, Bangladesh put up a total of 166-8 after the first innings. In reply, India scored 168-6 at the end of 20 overs, courtesy a strong half-century from their captain and a composed finish from Dinesh Karthik.

Here are the hits and misses from the final of the Nidahas trophy:

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#5 Hit: Yuzvendra Chahal

The 27-year-old continues to impress

Right now, this bowler is the most reliable spinner for India in limited-overs cricket, and his terrific performance against Bangladesh was a testament to that. Sharma brought the leggie into the action in the powerplay overs and instead of wilting under pressure, Chahal scalped two wickets in the fifth over of the game to swing the momentum right in India's favour.

His contribution was vital in restricting Bangladesh to a total less than 170. Not only did he pick up three wickets with his clever and precise bowling, but also maintained an economy of just 4.5 runs per over.

He ended with brilliant bowling figures of 3 for 18 in four overs.

#4 Miss: Indian left-handed batsmen

They scored a combined total of 10 runs in the final

Since Shikhar Dhawan and Suresh Raina are among the most experienced campaigners of the Indian squad for this tri-series, a lot was expected from the duo in the final. Their early dismissals put India in a spot of bother, considering they had lost two wickets within the first four overs of a tricky chase.

Dhawan was the first Indian wicket to fall on the day. He was dismissed by Shakib Al Hasan, who decided to lead from the front and opened the bowling for his team. The left-hander was dismissed in the fourth over of the game after scoring just 10 runs off 7 deliveries.

Raina's stay at the crease was even shorter than his predecessor. He was troubled by the right-arm pace of Rubel Hossain, and returned to the pavilion without troubling the scorers in the three deliveries that he faced.

India were struggling at 32-2 after 3.3 overs after the dismissals of the left-handed duo.

#3 Hit: Sabbir Rahman

Rahman was the pick of the Bangladesh batsmen

This right-handed batsman proved to be the vital cog of the Bangladesh batting line-up on the day. In a reliable yet offensive batting display, Rahman scored 77 off 50 balls to power his team to a fighting total.

Wickets kept tumbling around Bangladesh's number 3 batsman, but he went about his job without capitulating to the pressure. He was finally dismissed by Jaydev Unadkat in the second last over of the game. However, the damage was already done by then.

His powerful knock, which came at a strike rate of 154, included seven fours and four massive sixes.

#2 Miss: Mushfiqur Rahim

Failed when it mattered the most

The wicket-keeper batsman has been in incredible form in this series and a lot was expected off him going into the final against a big opposition like India.

However, Rahim could only manage 9 runs off 12 deliveries before being dismissed by Chahal in the 11th over of the game. His wicket was massive in the context of the game and put Bangladesh on the backfoot in the first innings.

It was a mediocre outing for the 29-year-old even in terms of the glovework. He missed a couple of straightforward chances to run the Indian batsmen out and those chances ended up costing Bangladesh in the end.

#1 Hit: Dinesh Karthik

The newly-appointed KKR captain was the match-winner for India

In MS Dhoni's absence, this right-handed batsman replaced him not only with the bat and the gloves, but also with his calm head. He came into the middle with India staring down the barrel of a shocking defeat.

However, Karthik refused to throw in the towel and turned the match on its head with his aggressive yet composed batting. After coming out to bat, he slammed as many as 22 runs in his over against Hossain.

Then, when India needed 5 runs off the last ball, Karthik stepped up yet again. With a tremendous shot over cover that was struck with the composure of a surgeon, he sealed the match, and the trophy, for the Men in Blue. He ended up with a riveting cameo of 29 runs off 8 deliveries.