Internet Desk: India gave itself a problem of plenty while Bangladesh left the warm-up round of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 with plenty of problems following their game at The Oval on Tuesday.
After Bangladesh opted to field, Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya – two players who will probably be fighting for a place in the first-choice XI – slammed quick-fire knocks of 94 and 80 not out respetively to power India to 324 for 7 in 50 overs.
Bangladesh’s response was gloomy, as Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav bagged three wickets apiece to send it crashing to 84 all out in just 23.4 overs.
To start with, Bangladesh made the most of overcast conditions when it had India 21 for 2 by the seventh over, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane both chopping on to their stumps.
At that stage, India had the option of going for safety in Virat Kohli or give the other batsmen a chance, keeping in mind that this was a practice game. It went for the latter by sending in Karthik, who had made a nine-ball duck in the earlier warm-up game against New Zealand.
Karthik began by punching Taskin Ahmed to the cover boundary and then got going with an exquisite straight drive off Mustafizur Rahman. He had Shikhar Dhawan for company, who too seemed in good touch after a 40 in the previous game. Dhawan carried that confidence into this game, taking on the off-spinners with ease after negotiating the pacers.
Karthik enjoyed a reprieve on 29 when Mosaddek Hossain dropped a tough catch at point, but that was a rare blip in an otherwise dominant partnership. The pair built a solid platform and brought up the team’s hundred within 21 overs, before Dhawan got a signal from the dressing room to go for his shots.
Dhawan duly obliged and slammed Sunzamul Islam for consecutive boundaries in the 23rd over but fell in the same over when he slogged the left-arm spinner to mid-wicket. The breakthrough didn’t have much impact as Karthik followed up that century partnership with an 85-run stand with Kedar Jadhav in the middle overs. Both batsmen targeted the left-arm spinners Sunzamul and Shakib Al Hasan, Karthik in particular impressing with his footwork and array of strokes.
Jadhav fell in the 33rd over when he was deceived in flight by Sunzamul, and Karthik was denied an opportunity for a century when he was called back after 35 overs.
India’s sole focus in the game was to prepare for the main event, and it once again paid rich dividends as Pandya too grabbed the opportunity.
India was on 227 for 5 at the end of 40 overs but Pandya’s presence meant it could accelerate with ease. Hardik was on 35 off 34 at one stage but plundered 45 more off his next 20 balls. It helped India score 94 runs in the last 10, comfortably crossing the 300-mark.
Bangladesh’s batting unit would have been confident after making 341 in its first warm-up match but it didn’t have Tamim Iqbal, who scored a century in the first warm-up game against Pakistan.
It was soon evident that the target was way too much as India’s pacers destroyed the top order, leaving Bangladesh 22 for 6 by the eighth over.
The downslide started in the fourth over when Umesh wrecked Bangladesh with pace and swing. Soumya Sarkar first slashed a short one to Karthik behind the stumps, before Sabbir Rahman was bowled by an inswinging full ball.
There was a slight role reversal in India’s attack as Bhuvneshwar complemented Umesh’s swing with sharp short balls. It led to Imrul Kayes and Shakib top-edging to catchers on the leg side, and Bhuvneshwar followed it up with an outswinger that got Mahmudullah’s outside edge, leaving Bangladesh 21 for 5. It became 22 for 6 before the blink of the eye when Umesh did the same to Mosaddek.
Mehedi Hasan, the No. 8, helped himself to 24 runs off 34 balls, but it would hardly have lifted the mood in the camp ahead of Bangladesh’s game against England, the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 opener, on June 1 at The Oval.