Asia Cup T20, India vs Bangladesh: Five talking points

Rohit Sharma’s knock of 83 off 55 balls led India to a competitive total of 166Bangladesh did their homework on the pitch extremely well, but perhaps forgot to do the same on their own game, as they fell in their own trap and lost the Asia Cup opener to India by 45 runs. Rohit Sharma was the wrecker-in-chief for the hosts, as he smashed 83 off 55 balls on a green top, that was by no means an easy wicket to bat on. He was helped by Hardik Pandya’s cameo of 31 off just 18 balls, as India reached a challenging total of 166/5 in their 20 overs.That challenging total proved out to be way above par for the Tigers, as they weren’t able to cope with some excellent bowling from Ashish Nehra and company, and could manage only 121/7 in their 20 overs.Here are the talking points from the game:

#1 India\'s woes against green tops continue

Dhawan couldn't cover the lateral movement of the ball and was clean bowled

Hosting the second marquee tournament in the span of two months, Bangladesh had done their homework pretty well, at least as far as the pitch was concerned, as they took some lessons from India’s game against Sri Lanka in Pune and prepared a green top to kick off the Asia Cup.

At the outset, the Indians looked like putting themselves in the harm’s way, when the three of the top four couldn’t adjust to the change of conditions-- for the umpteenth time, it has to be said-- and threw away their wickets inside the first ten overs.

Indians, the flat-track bullies, as the reputation goes, looked like failing once again, when they couldn’t cope with the lateral movement and the extra bounce that the Mirpur pitch offered. Shikhar Dhawan could not cover the seam movement and was clean bowled by an incoming Al-Amin Hossain delivery.

That brought India’s best batsman to the crease, Virat Kohli, who looked rather unsettled, something rarely seen with Kohli, as he tried a couple of wild swings and also stepped down the track to up the ante in the initial overs, as he and Rohit Sharma were struggling initially with the moving ball.

That eventually led to his downfall, as he tried to drive a delivery that hit him very high on the bat, and resulted in an easy catch for Mahmudullah at mid-off. Suresh Raina, who statistically, has been India’s best batsman in all T20s, missed a turning delivery from Mahmudullah and was bowled again.

Had it not been for the wisdom that Rohit showed, India would have been in deeper trouble. This match again brought to the fore India’s weakness against the moving ball on a lively surface.

#2 Rohit Sharma shows his maturity

Sharma played the anchor's role in India's innings

In Pune against Sri Lanka, on a similar surface, Rohit was dismissed in the very first over of the match and saw his team capitulate thereafter for a paltry 101.

It seemed that the Indian opener had learnt his lesson from the game, as on a wicket that has been the nemesis for India over several years now, he played an excellent innings of 83 off just 55 balls.

He was granted a reprieve, though, as he was dropped by Shakib-Al-Hasan at point, when he had made just 21 runs. That drop effectively turned out to be the turning point of the match.

Rohit and Yuvraj built the innings first, as India played cautiously in the first 10 overs reaching 52/3 after being three down for 42 in the 8th over. After that, the duo slowly tried to increase the scoring rate, as Rohit scored 14 runs off the three balls bowled immediately after the dropped catch.

The right-handed batsman then played freely, carving out the gaps between fielders, and was also helped by some ordinary fielding by the Bangladeshis. Yuvraj’s dismissal in the 14th over didn’t affect Rohit’s tempo as he hit a six and two fours in the very next over bowled by Mashrafe Mortaza.

Although he fell short of a century, the maturity that was shown by the batsman in terms of assessing the conditions and not playing too many rash shots helped India post an above par total in challenging batting conditions.

Credit must be given to Rohit when it is due, as it was majorly due to his innings, that India were able to have something to bowl at.

#3 Hardik Pandya\'s blossoming at the right time

Hardik Pandya was akin to a perfect all-rounder for India in this game

If at Ranchi we had seen Hardik Pandya mauling the Sri Lankan bowlers on the most helpful of surfaces, his innings here was much better, as he struck the ball with a strike rate 172 during his innings of 31 off 18.

He came to the crease in the 14th over, after Yuvraj was dismissed, and immediately took on the bowlers, hitting a four and a six off Mustafizur Rahman-- the man who was India’s tormentor the last time they played in Bangladesh.

Pandya followed that up with two consecutive boundaries in the 18th over off Al-Amin to give India the final push towards the planned target of 150. Mustafizur was taken for another four by the man from Gujarat before he finally fell in the final over trying to slog a ball out of the ground.

On a surface that could be termed as a fast bowler’s paradise, such ball smacking at will should really be appreciated, as the tempo of the innings and the momentum of the match was shifted in India’s favour with Pandya’s blitzkrieg.

With the ball too, he gave away just 23 runs in 4 overs and also picked up the wicket of Sabbir Rehman.

These two performances are very good signs for India, especially in T20 cricket, that would be the tune of the day for the next month or so, as he is slowly blossoming into a good all-rounder, and has shown his ability to perform on contrasting surfaces.

#4 Ashish Nehra\'s cracking spell

Nehra picked up 3/23 from his 4 overs

Providing a conducive environment doesn’t guarantee a full-proof performance unless the players have the skill to exploit the conditions. If the Bangladeshi bowlers failed on that front, especially after starting brilliantly, Ashish Nehra showed them exactly how it is done in the second innings.

For the first couple of overs, Nehra was unplayable, as he moved the ball from the good length area, creating plenty of problems for the Bangladeshi opening batsman, which ultimately culminated into Mohammad Mithun’s wicket, who was clean bowled in the 3rd over.

Nehra then returned at the death to nail the final bolts into Bangladesh’s coffin by dismissing Mahmudullah and Mortaza off consecutive balls. His figures of 4-0-23-3 were excellent given the circumstances today and the nature of the game.

Ever since his return to the national side during the Australian tour, Nehra has gone from strength to strength, and his opening bowling partnership with Jasprit Bumrah has been mightily effective for India.

From India’s perspective, things are looking good on the bowling front, something that the fans haven’t had the luxury of witnessing, for the past couple of years.

#5 Bangladesh\'s inability to withstand pressure shows

Bangladesh were completely outplayed today in every department on the field

The home side began their Asia Cup campaign in an emphatic style, dismissing two of India’s best batsmen inside the powerplay overs. At the halfway stage, India were 53/2, and would have been looking at a target of 120-130 at best.

What transpired thereafter saw India plunder 113 runs in the final 10 overs, at a run-rate of 11.3 as compared to the rate of 5.3 rpo in the first 10. Much of this had to do with some ordinary fielding, that included a relatively simple chance off Rohit Sharma’s bat that was put down by Shakib at point.

Besides, the ground fielding wasn’t up to the mark as well, as Bangladeshi fielders fumbled on several occasions, conceding boundaries at times, and extra runs on other occasions.

Also, the bowlers lost their plot after the halfway stage, as the lengths became shorter and shorter, enabling the Indian batsmen to get under the ball and play the big shots with ease.

In cricket, especially in T20 cricket, momentum shifts with every ball, and the ability to withstand pressure and perform under it is one of the key qualities that a good T20 side must have. Bangladesh clearly failed on that front.

With the bat as well, the hosts started panicking from the first ball itself and opener Soumya Sarkar attempted a couple of rash shots against moving deliveries. Imrul Kayes and Shakib-Al-Hasan couldn’t handle the pressure applied by the Indian bowlers at all, as they found themselves completely at sea.

Kayes managed 14 off 24 while Shakib scored 3 off 8 as the run-rate crept on with every passing delivery.

Except Sabbir Rehman who made 44 of 32, none of the Bangladeshi batsmen could really trouble the scorers. Also, one of their best batsmen, Mahumudullah, batted at number seven, which is too low a position for a batsman of his calibre.

Bangladesh were outplayed today and failed in all three departments- batting, bowling and fielding.