Asia Cup 2018, Ind vs Ban: India eye winning start to Super-4 stage today

An upbeat India will be eyeing another convincing victory over Bangladesh in their first game of the Super four round of the Asia Cup 2018 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in United Arab Emirates today.

After a lacklusture show against minnows Hong Kong, defending champions India, led by stand-in captain Rohit Sharma, rode on an all-round show to outclass arch-rivals Pakistan by eight wickets on Wednesday.

India, however, will need to be careful today as the Mashrafe Mortaza-led Bangladeshis are well-known party spoilers. And, that India is not at its best in the absence of regular skipper Virat Kohli, was revealed in their performance against Hong Kong. Indian bowlers were rather disappointing in that match, though they picked up the pieces and did well against the Sarfaraz Ahmed-led Pakistani side.

For India, the worry will be arriving at a team combination, especially with Hardik Pandya now ruled out of the tournament following a back injury he suffered in the India vs Pakistan match, and the likelihood of pace spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar being rested after back-to-back games against Hong Kong and Pakistan.

Left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed might be brought in place of Bhuvneshwar, but there is no clarity on who Pandya's replacement might be.

Deepak Chahar has been flown in as a replacement player, but he's unlikely to be drafted straightaway into the India playing 11.

Manish Pandey could add some batting depth and seems a more probable addition to India’s struggling middle order. As a candidate to fill in for Pandya in the bowling department, Kedar Jadhav, with his off breaks proving more than handy, could take care of the injured player’s quota of overs.