Rohit Sharma and his troops will look to win their record seventh title when India take on Bangladesh in the final of the Asia Cup 2018 in Dubai, on Friday.
The ‘Men in Blue’ have been playing good consistent cricket despite giving chances to fringe players in the tournament. But India are expected to field their strongest side in the final as they won’t be taking Bangladesh lightly — who beat Pakistan in their last Super Four clash to seal a place in the championship clash.
Here’s a look at our predicted XI for India’s Asia Cup 2018 match against Bangladesh –
Rohit Sharma (c)
Stand-in-skipper Rohit Sharma will once again look to lead from the front and fire India to the title in Dubai. In the four matches that he has batted in the tournament so far, he has scored 23, 52, 83* and 111*. Rohit’s consistency at the top is the reason why India have been getting good starts and he will look to continue in the same manner in the all-important final as well.
Shikhar Dhawan
Vice-captain Shikhar Dhawan has been firing on all cylinders and is the leading run-getter of the Asia Cup currently. In four innings, Dhawan has smashed 327 runs, inclusive of two centuries. Dhawan’s partnership with Rohit has been the talk of the tournament and if they bat in the final like they have been doing, expect India to return home with the trophy.
Ambati Rayudu
Ambati Rayudu hasn’t been as prolific as the aforementioned duo but he has done well whenever he has been called upon to do a job. He got runs against Hong Kong (60) and Pakistan (61*) while playing in the middle-order and when he asked to open the innings against Afghanistan in the Super Four clash, he put in a good shift to score a fine half-century (57).
KL Rahul
KL Rahul has many-a-times reiterated his desire to open the innings but with Rohit and Dhawan batting brilliantly at the top, Rahul has to contend with being second fiddle. But whenever he has got the opportunity, he has grabbed it with both hands. Rahul hit a 66-ball 60 against Afghanistan in his only game of the tournament during the team’s last match. With Dinesh Karthik not being seen as a long-term option for the team, the think-tank might look to give Rahul another crack at sealing his place in the middle-order.
MS Dhoni
Wicket-keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni still remains one of the first names to be picked in Team India’s playing XI in the limited-overs format of the game. Dhoni hasn’t been at his best with the bat in the tournament but he has been as chirpy as ever behind the stumps and marshalled the troops well without being the skipper of the side.
Kedar Jadhav
The reason why Kedar Jadhav gets picked in the team on a consistent basis is that apart from being a good hard-hitting batsman, he has a knack of picking wickets with his spin bowling. He has not been needed with the bat so far and therefore has not been tested. But he can play the role of the finisher like he has done few times in the past.
Ravindra Jadeja
Since making his return to white-ball cricket, Ravindra Jadeja has picked seven wickets in three matches. He also became the highest wicket-taker for India in the Asia Cup during team’s last match against Afghanistan. With Hardik Pandya continues to be sidelined, Jadeja remains India’s only known all-rounder in the playing XI.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Fast-bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar has had a very hot and cold tournament so far, but he is almost guaranteed of a place in the team for the final. Bhuvneshwar picked up three-wicket hauls in two matches while he went wicket-less in the other two. But his ability to picks wickets at the start of the innings makes him a dangerous bowler for the opposition to deal with.
Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah has taken wickets in all the three matches that he has been part of in the tournament. Like Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah too has been instrumental in giving India good starts by picking early wickets. Bumrah has seven wickets to his name so far and would like to add to that tally against Bangladesh and consolidate his position at the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings.
Kuldeep Yadav
Not only Kuldeep Yadav is a wicket-taking spinner, but he also keeps the scoring rate down of the opposition as well. He has picked up seven wickets so far but went wicket-less when the India clashed with Bangladesh in the Super Four match. The Chinaman will look to better that record when the two teams meet again in the final.
Yuzvendra Chahal
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal hasn’t been at his best as he has picked up just five wickets in four matches in the tournament. But Chahal bowled exceedingly well against Pakistan in the Super Four clash, before he was rested for the dead-rubber against Afghanistan. The leggie will look to get back to his best against Bangladesh and put on a good show in the final.
