BackIND vs BAN T20 World Cup 2024: Rohit Sharma - Virat Kohli in focus as India aim to clinch semi-final berth
Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be aiming to get back in form with the second Super 8 match of T20 World Cup 2024 against Bangladeh on Saturday.
PremiumRohit Sharma-led India will take on Bangladesh at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua in their second Super 8 T20 World Cup 2024 match. While the Men in Blue have the momentum on their side, having just beaten Afghanistan in their last encounter, Bangladesh are reeling from a loss to Australia and will need to pull off an upset in Antigua to stay in the race for the semi-finals.
Can Virat Kohli - Rohit Sharma regain form against Bangladesh?
Much was made of the opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the build-up to the World Cup. However, the partnership hasn't produced the desired results, with Kohli scoring just 28 runs in the 4 innings so far, while Rohit has also struggled after his half-century against Ireland in the first match.
In fact, even India's batting coach Vikram Rathour has publicly stated that he isn't happy with Kohli's performances so far and would like to see the senior pro score more runs.
When asked about Kohli's run-a-ball 24 innings in an interaction with the media after the Afghanistan match, Rathour said, “I’m not happy. I would love it if he gets going and scores more runs… But yeah, it is good when you are challenged at times. You know, the guys who are not getting too much of batting in India sometimes, they are the ones who put up scores today and our middle-order came to play. So, it was good to see,"
In the absence of solid opening partnerships, Team India have relied heavily on the support of middle-order batsmen like Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya. However, as they head into the semi-finals, Team India will be looking for their two experienced openers to be at the top of their game.
India's bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, has been nothing short of spectacular and has played a key role in all their victories so far in the tournament. Pacer Arshdeep Singh has also been in fine form, while Hardik Pandya has helped give the Indian captain some much-needed flexibility.
Bangladesh, on the other hand, will need to get their act together if they are to stand any chance against this formidable Indian side. While Bangladesh's bowlers, led by Mustafizur Rahman and Rishad Hossain, have performed well in this tournament while their batting has been found lacking. The skills of the Bangladesh batsmen will be put to the test when they come up against the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav on Saturday.
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