CWC 2023, India vs Bangladesh: Virat Kohli's 103, Rohit Sharma-Shubman Gill's 88-runs stand and Ravindra Jadeja's 2-38 are top performances. India beat Bangladesh and continue to be at second spot in points table.
Brief Scores: India 261/3(Kohli 103*, Gill 53, Rohit 48 , Mehidy 2/47) beat Bangladesh 256/8 (Litton 66, Tanzid , Mahmudullah 46, Jadeja 2/38) by 7 wickets.
Player of the Match: Virat Kohli 103*(97)
The triumphant team India, after being victorious in all their previous three games, clashed with Bangladesh, who were crushed by New Zealand by eight wickets in their previous encounter, for the 17th game of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 at the MCA Stadium in Pune.
India thumped Bangladesh comprehensively by seven wickets while chasing down the target of 257 runs set by Bangladesh and stamped their full domination as a host nation as the host nations have been the winners of the ODI WC in the last three editions.
The “minnows” Bangladesh caused one of the most shocking upsets in cricket history when they defeated India at the 2007 Cricket World Cup in the league stage. India and Bangladesh have faced each other 5 times in the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup, and 4 games have been won by India.
Talking points: Shubman Gill among runs, looks like a promising sign for India
The talking point of the town before the World Cup was Gill’s ominous form in IPL and ODIs. Unfortunately, he contracted dengue a few days before the World Cup, which forced him out of the first two matches in the WC against Australia and Afghanistan. He returned to team India in the next pressure boiler match against Pakistan. He looked confident while making his ODI WC debut and hit beautiful shots but couldn’t convert them to a big score and scored only 16 runs. It showed a glimpse of the in-form, confident lad here to make a strong statement. He scored his first-ever half-century in his second innings only against Bangladesh and 53 runs in 55 balls without showing any hints of fear and discomfort.
Is Shardul Thakur’s below-average performance with the ball a concern for India?
Shardul Thakur’s inclusion in the team has given Team India the cushion of an extra bowling option and elongation of tail-end batting. But the ploy of including him in the mix at the cost of compromising with a quality bowler or a finisher in the team composition will surely hurt India’s chances of seeing themselves as the ultimate champions. Shardul’s performance in the ongoing WC has been below par, as he could claim only 2 wickets to his name in 3 innings at an average of 51.
Now it is time to assess the top three performances from the India-Bangladesh game:-
Ravindra Jadeja’s off-spin weaves a web around Bangladesh
The pitch in Pune was a flat belter, and Bangladesh batters made sure to capitalize on it with a positive intent, which resulted in a 93-run first wicket stand. But as soon as spinners were introduced in the game, India pegged back with quick strikes. Ravindra Jadeja produced an economical spell of 38 runs with 2 important wickets to get Bangladesh on the back foot after Bangladesh got off to a healthy start. Jadeja ended the struggle of the standing captain of Bangladesh, Nazmul Hussain Shanto, by bowling back of a length delivery, which caught Shanto in front of the stumps on the left leg. Litton Das looked to attack Jadeja to up the ante, dancing down the track for a big shot, but he miscued it in the air and got dismissed for 66.
Read More: CWC 2023, IND vs AFG: Rohit scores fastest WC century for India; hosts jump to second spot
Rohit-Shubman stitched an important 88-run first wicket stand
When Rohit Sharma is in the form of his life, the batters at the other end merely join the spectators list somewhat like Rohit Sharma having the magical bat and arms of the main protagonist of Chain Kulli ki Main Kulli. Rohit Sharma started with a bang in the chase, taking on bowlers to cleaners and hitting exquisite pull shots and hook shots, which are a treat to the eyes. While playing his favorite pull shot against a directed short ball by Hasan Mahmud, Rohit Sharma got caught by Hridoy at deep backward square leg. His entertaining innings came to an end at 48 runs off 40 balls.
Shubman Gill started slow at the beginning, playing second fiddle to Sharma, but soon he also joined the hitting bandwagon with Sharma and scored his first-ever World Cup century in his second ODI WC innings. He got dismissed at 53 runs in 55 balls by Mehidy Hasan Miraz on a loopy back-of-length delivery.
Virat Kohli defying every odds to reach his 78th century
India lost their openers by 132 runs, and the onus of getting the team to the winning line fell on the shoulders of the able chase master Virat Kohli. Kohli started hitting the Bangladesh bowlers all around the park without sweat. Kohli was seen fighting hard for his 78th century, taking as many strikes as possible towards the fag end of the innings. He showed no signs of fatigue and cramps and kept running 1’s and 2’s to keep as many strikes with him as possible. Kohli finished the match with a six, reaching his 48th century in 273 innings in ODI and 78 centuries in his international career.
Statistical highlights from India vs Bangladesh, CWC 2023
Bangladesh played against India in ODI in India after a long hiatus of 25 years.
The opening stand 93 between Das & Hasan is Bangladesh's highest 1st wicket partnership in the ODI WC.
This stand is also Bangladesh's 3rd highest opening partnership against India in ODIs.
The opening stand of 88 runs between Rohit & Gill is the second-highest opening partnership for India against Bangladesh in ODI WC.
Mushfiqur Rahim now has played the maximum number of games (33 games)for Bangladesh in ODI WC, surpassing Shakib Al Hasan’s 32 games.
Shubman Gill scored his first-ever half-century (53) in the ODI WC.
Virat Kohli has crossed the 26,000-run mark in international cricket.
Virat Kohli registered his 48th ODI hundred in 273 innings, just behind Sachin Tendulkar’s 49 centuries in 452 innings.
Kohli has scored his third century in ODI WC in 30 innings.
ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Points Table
Points Table Scenario & What’s to Come
India is in the 2nd position now, winning 4 matches in similar games and having 8 points to their name. They have a net run rate of +1.659. On the other hand, Bangladesh sits at the 7th position with a net run rate of -0.784 with 2 points
On October 20, Friday, Pakistan will be seen in action against Australia at the Chennaswamy stadium in Bangalore from 2:00 PM onwards.