After the conclusion of the 7th edition of the Indian Premier League in the first week of June, the focus of Indian Cricket shifted to the tour of England which, in my personal view, is a bit hyped. In the process, the three match ODI series between India and Bangladesh went unnoticed. It was sad to see that initially, there was no channel willing to broadcast this tour. Even people who called themselves huge fans of Indian cricket did not follow this brief contest.
The probable reason for this could be the absence of big names like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from the squad for this encounter. But, I think that from the perspective of the upcoming 50 over World Cup in 2015, this competition was pretty significant, because it is the performance of the youngsters that proves to be a surprise in important tournaments where the big players are under immense pressure. It is important for all cricket enthusiasts to know how the talented but inexperienced Indian team fared in the Bangladesh test.
Before moving on to the match wise analysis, it is important to note that the weather conditions played a very important role throughout the series. The afternoons were unusually hot; which took a test of the physical strength and stamina of players from both sides, irrespective of which team batted or bowled first; with rains during the evenings. In fact, there were rain interruptions in all the three games. This made it difficult for the captain who won the toss to decide on whether his team would bowl or bat first.
FIRST ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL
This match was very significant as it marked the return of Robin Uthappa into the Indian team along with the debut of off spinner Parvez Rassol and all rounder Akshar Patel. The Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim decided to bat first on a dead wicket, in the intense heat.
Although there were half centuries from Shakib Al Hassan and Mushfiqur Rahim which propelled Bangladesh to 272/9 after 50 overs, credit must be given to the Indian bowlers for disciplined bowling and picking wickets at regular intervals. The star with the ball was Umesh Yadav, who picked up three wickets.
The openers gave India a solid start with a 99 run partnership for the first wicket before rain interrupted play. India were 100/1 in 16.4 overs with half centuries from both openers, Rahane and Uthappa. India coasted home after play resumed as only 150 runs were required to win in 25 overs. Thus, India won the first ODI by 7 wickets.
SECOND ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL
After being lucky at the toss again, Rahim invited India to bat first in the oppressive heat, on a wicket which had some help for the seam bowlers. The Indian batting did not have an answer to the immaculate bowling of debutant Taskin Ahmed as they were bundled up for just 105 with the debutant picking up 5/28. The match was now 41 overs a side because of rains.
Bangladesh were cruising home at 44/2 even as Mohit Sharma struck twice. But it was some irresponsible batting from Bangladesh and some extraordinary bowling from medium pacer Stuart Binny which meant that the hosts were bowled out for 58 which is their joint lowest total in ODIs. Binny recorded bowling figures of 6-4 in 4.4 overs which are the best bowling figures for any Indian in a 50 over game. It was good to see the confidence Raina had in his pacers as he did not introduce any spinner into the attack in the whole innings.
The probable reason for this could be the absence of big names like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from the squad for this encounter. But, I think that from the perspective of the upcoming 50 over World Cup in 2015, this competition was pretty significant, because it is the performance of the youngsters that proves to be a surprise in important tournaments where the big players are under immense pressure. It is important for all cricket enthusiasts to know how the talented but inexperienced Indian team fared in the Bangladesh test.
Before moving on to the match wise analysis, it is important to note that the weather conditions played a very important role throughout the series. The afternoons were unusually hot; which took a test of the physical strength and stamina of players from both sides, irrespective of which team batted or bowled first; with rains during the evenings. In fact, there were rain interruptions in all the three games. This made it difficult for the captain who won the toss to decide on whether his team would bowl or bat first.
FIRST ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL
This match was very significant as it marked the return of Robin Uthappa into the Indian team along with the debut of off spinner Parvez Rassol and all rounder Akshar Patel. The Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim decided to bat first on a dead wicket, in the intense heat.
Although there were half centuries from Shakib Al Hassan and Mushfiqur Rahim which propelled Bangladesh to 272/9 after 50 overs, credit must be given to the Indian bowlers for disciplined bowling and picking wickets at regular intervals. The star with the ball was Umesh Yadav, who picked up three wickets.
The openers gave India a solid start with a 99 run partnership for the first wicket before rain interrupted play. India were 100/1 in 16.4 overs with half centuries from both openers, Rahane and Uthappa. India coasted home after play resumed as only 150 runs were required to win in 25 overs. Thus, India won the first ODI by 7 wickets.
SECOND ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL
After being lucky at the toss again, Rahim invited India to bat first in the oppressive heat, on a wicket which had some help for the seam bowlers. The Indian batting did not have an answer to the immaculate bowling of debutant Taskin Ahmed as they were bundled up for just 105 with the debutant picking up 5/28. The match was now 41 overs a side because of rains.
Bangladesh were cruising home at 44/2 even as Mohit Sharma struck twice. But it was some irresponsible batting from Bangladesh and some extraordinary bowling from medium pacer Stuart Binny which meant that the hosts were bowled out for 58 which is their joint lowest total in ODIs. Binny recorded bowling figures of 6-4 in 4.4 overs which are the best bowling figures for any Indian in a 50 over game. It was good to see the confidence Raina had in his pacers as he did not introduce any spinner into the attack in the whole innings.
THIRD ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL
This time it was Raina who won the toss and decided that India would bat first. This decision back fired as the Bangladeshi bowlers put up a collective effort to restrict India to 119/9 in 34.2 overs before rain came to India’s rescue and the match ended in a draw. Thus, under the dynamic leadership of Suresh Raina, the young Indian side won the series 2-0. Although the bowlers put up a very impressive show, the batting was far from convincing.
Next up is the very important tour of England where MS Dhoni and his boys would hope to find some winning momentum on foreign soil. The Champions Trophy win would be an encouragement for the side but, test matches are a different scenario altogether. Wishing the team all the luck for the ‘BIG TEST’ as it is called by many…
-DVS
This time it was Raina who won the toss and decided that India would bat first. This decision back fired as the Bangladeshi bowlers put up a collective effort to restrict India to 119/9 in 34.2 overs before rain came to India’s rescue and the match ended in a draw. Thus, under the dynamic leadership of Suresh Raina, the young Indian side won the series 2-0. Although the bowlers put up a very impressive show, the batting was far from convincing.
Next up is the very important tour of England where MS Dhoni and his boys would hope to find some winning momentum on foreign soil. The Champions Trophy win would be an encouragement for the side but, test matches are a different scenario altogether. Wishing the team all the luck for the ‘BIG TEST’ as it is called by many…
-DVS