In Dubai, it will be a battle between a dominant unit and a hopeful one. India, unbeaten in the Asia Cup so far, carry the weight of favourites, while Bangladesh arrive with momentum and a head coach determined to inject fearlessness into his players. The Super Fours clash on Wednesday will surely push us to know which team is definitely entering the Asia Cup 2025 final.
Can Bangladesh upset India?
Phil Simmons, who has seen India from both sides of the fence as player and coach, kept it simple: “Every team has the ability to beat India. “The game is played on the day. It’s not what India has done before. It’s what happens on Wednesday. It’s what happens during that three and a half hour period. We will try to play as best as we can and hope to find chinks in India’s armoury. That’s the way we win games.”
Bangladesh’s record with only 1 win in 17 T20Is against India is awful but their recent victory over Sri Lanka in the Super Fours offers a rare glimmer of hope. Mustafizur Rahman, with 37 wickets against India across formats, and Mahedi Hasan will be central to exploiting the Dubai surface.
India, though, look formidable. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side has swept aside all opposition, including two clinical wins against Pakistan. Abhishek Sharma has lit up the tournament with 201 runs at a strike rate of 162, while Tilak Varma, Shubman Gill and Sanju Samson have all chipped in. With the ball, Kuldeep Yadav (8 wickets at an economy of 5.6) and Varun Chakravarthy have been decisive in the middle overs, while Shivam Dube’s knack for breaking partnerships has been a revelation.
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