India look to win second T20
Shaken India look to level series, Bangla eye another upset
Rajkot, Nov. 6: Their frailties in the shortest format under the scanner, India would be aiming to ensure that a plucky Bangladesh don’t run away with the momentum when the two sides clash in the second T20 International, which is facing a cyclonic threat here on Thursday.
India lost the smog-hit opening T20 in Delhi by seven wickets on Sunday, a stunning result against a side which landed here after a players’ strike over pay and other issues and the suspension of their biggest cricketer — Shakib Al Hasan — for failure to report corrupt approaches.
India have not had the kind of success in T20s as they have enjoyed in the other two formats of late and that is evident from the results this year. They have already lost a series at home this year — to Australia — before drawing against South Africa who were otherwise hammered in Tests.
In the absence of some senior players, including regular skipper Virat Kohli, the second game of the three-match series is an ideal platform for the fringe players to show what they are made of. All this will depend on how much of an impact Cyclone Maha, which is expected to make landfall in Gujarat on match day, has on the weather in the city.
In fact, heavy rains, associated with lightening, lashed the city on Wednesday evening. The wicket at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium is, however, protected with covers. In their loss in the series opener, stand-in-captain Rohit Sharma admitted that India were not up to the mark in the field and a few wrong DRS calls also contributed to the eyeopening defeat.
Opener Shikhar Dhawan’s form and strikerate is also a concern going into the game on Thursday. A series loss to Bangladesh will only pose more questions to the home team as it looks to zero in on a settled squad for next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
The hosts had a troublesome time with the bat in Delhi where they recovered to post 148, which was chased down brilliantly by experienced Bangladesh batsman Mushfiqur Rahim. Rohit, who had a rare failure on Sunday, would be keen to lead by example. —