A youthful Indian team outperformed a seasoned Bangladesh squad to commence the three-match T20I series. With two debutants in their lineup and only three players retained from the team that secured the T20 World Cup title earlier this year, India demonstrated their superiority over Bangladesh, who appeared to mirror the team from the World Cup.
The T20 champions, India, reaffirmed their title acquired earlier this year with a commanding seven-wicket victory against Bangladesh at the newly established venue in Gwalior on Sunday. Arshdeep Singh and Varun CV each took three wickets, dismissing the opposition for a total of 127 runs, before the Indian batsmen showcased their prowess, completing the chase in merely the 12th over.
Bangladesh's dismal batting performance
Following the loss of Litton Das to a dismissal in the opening over, Bangladesh appeared to struggle with their batting on the Gwalior pitch, which exhibited slightly inconsistent bounce and faced a precise Indian bowling attack. After Arshdeep Singh’s initial breakthroughs, Mayank Yadav commenced his international career with a maiden over, while the returning Varun Chakravarthy effectively dismantled the middle overs. In pursuit of a modest target of 128, India showcased their dominance, successfully reaching the target with 49 balls remaining.
The leader of the attack, Arshdeep, who is rapidly climbing the wickets chart for India, commenced his spell effectively, utilizing just the right amount of swing to keep the young Parvez Hossain Emon, one of the few newcomers in the Bangladesh lineup, in check. Das then opened the face of his bat to score a four off the first ball, prompting the short third fielder to retreat and a leg-side fielder to advance. Attempting to play the field on the second ball, he was ultimately outmaneuvered by its angle. In his second over, Arshdeep dismissed Parvez, who had previously hit Hardik Pandya for a six, leaving Bangladesh at 14 for 2.
The pairing of Mayank and Varun, characterized by their rapid pace and enigmatic spin, was far from the optimal combination to accelerate the game, especially given the circumstances. Bangladesh’s sole opportunity lay in the possibility of their opponents being out of practice; Mayank was participating in competitive cricket for the first time since sustaining an injury during the IPL, while Varun was returning to the Indian XI after a three-year absence. However, neither player exhibited any signs of being out of form.
Varun generated a scoring chance on the second ball; however, fellow debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy was unable to locate the ball due to the floodlights at the newly inaugurated stadium in Gwalior. Mayank delivered the final over of the powerplay, marking him as the third player to commence his India T20I career with a maiden over. The other two players to achieve this feat are the current chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, who has expedited Mayank’s selection, and Arshdeep.
Shortly thereafter, both players were rewarded with a wicket each. Towhid Hridoy, who had previously benefited from a dropped catch, hit Varun directly to long-on, while Mahmudullah sent Mayank’s delivery to deep point. With runs scarce, they had little choice but to attempt these low-percentage shots. Varun remained elusive, dismissing Jaker Ali with an inside edge and Rishad Hossain with an outside edge.
Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto was compelled to assume the role of anchor; however, he too succumbed to the offspin bowling of Washington Sundar, who restricted his space and had him caught and bowled. Mehidy Hasan Miraz extended the innings, yet he could not make a significant impact against the precision of Arshdeep, Pandya, and Mayank during the final overs. The last seven overs produced no more than single-digit runs as wickets continued to tumble. Arshdeep concluded the innings by dismantling the off and middle stumps with a perfectly executed yorker.
Easy chase for the explosive Indian cricket team
The hosts were determined to achieve more than a mere victory; they aspired for a substantial triumph. Sanju Samson, seizing the opportunity to open the innings in the absence of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, commenced with an impressive performance, striking two boundaries on either side of the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Abhishek Sharma exhibited a more forceful approach, targeting Taskin Ahmed with a six and two fours in the second over. In a moment of overexcitement, he unfortunately ran himself out while attempting a single that was not available.
India, however, maintained its dominance over Bangladesh. Samson consistently propelled the ball down the ground, while Suryakumar Yadav skillfully crafted shots behind the wicket. This performance culminated in India’s most successful powerplay against Bangladesh in T20Is, amassing a total of 71 runs, which ranks as the fourth-highest score conceded by Bangladesh in powerplays. Although Samson’s dismissal in the final over of the powerplay did not hinder India’s momentum, he may feel disheartened by his dismissal on the very first delivery of offspin he encountered. Both players contributed with rapid scores of 29 runs each.
Hardik Pandya executed the most remarkable shot of the match during the 12th over, performing a no-look ramp that resulted in a four off Taskin. He followed this with another four and then struck a short ball for a six, thereby concluding the chase with an impressive unbeaten score of 39 runs from merely 16 deliveries.
Match Scorecard: Bangladesh 127 in 20 overs (Mehidy Hasan Miraz 35*; Arshdeep Singh 3-14, Varun CV 3-31) lost to India 132/3 in 11.5 overs (Hardik Pandya 39*, Suryakumar Yadav 29; Mehidy Hasan Miraz 1-7) by 7 wickets
