Team India are getting ready to take on Bangladesh in their fourth match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 campaign at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune on Thursday. India and New Zealand are the only two unbeaten teams in the competition so far after the first 16 matches and hosts will look to maintain that record and remain on the top of the table.
Rohit Sharma’s side are the only team which will be playing all their games at different venues. The MCA Stadium in Pune is high-scoring venue once again with small ground dimensions as well as higher altitude – which means potential for more sixes to be hit.
“We know that there will be nine different surfaces. Weather-wise, conditions will be different. We were in Nagpur, so it was hot. We’re playing in Dharamsala, so it will be cold. So, I think what we know that this will happen. As a team we think that this surface, prior to this, in this month, if there were any matches or not, data is important to see what happened in past games. But if you look at this surface, it has been a good surface. Overall, consistently, in any match, whether you play T20 or one day, it has been a very good surface,” Team India bowling Paras Mhambrey said on the eve of the clash
“As a bowling unit, I feel it is a challenging surface. Because the ball comes on the bat very well. It is a small ground, comparatively, you will see other venues, comparatively it is a small ground. It is a high altitude. So, I think here, more boundaries will be scored, the sixers will be more. So, it is challenging,” he added.
Mhambrey’s comments indicate that India are unlikely to experiment too much with their Playing 11 for the clash against Bangladesh. It means Shardul Thakur could once again play ahead of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and pacer Mohammed Shami. Shardul only bowled a handful of overs in India’s last match against Pakistan in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Bangladesh, on the other hand, will be hoping that Shakib al Hasan will be fit enough to take the field in the big match against India. They could promote all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz to the top of the order to partner with Litton Das to open the innings, replacing out of form Tanzim Hasan.
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India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
Bangladesh: Tanzid Hasan, Litton Das, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Towhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mahmudullah, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Mustafizur Rahman