India captain Virat Kohli won the toss and elected to bat first in their crucial game against Bangladesh at Edgbaston in Birmingham today.
Both teams made two changes to their side. Pacer Rubel Hossain replaces Mehedi Hasan Miraz while Sabbir Rahman comes in in place of yet-to-be-fit Mahmudullah.
India’s two changes are: Pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar replacing spinner Kuldeep Yadav and batsman Dinesh Karthik replacing all-rounder Kedar Jadav.
Playing XIs:
Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Liton Das, Mosaddek Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mashrafe Mortaza(c), Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman
India: Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah
India have just lost their first match against England following a nervy win against Afghanistan while Bangladesh are hanging there with three wins against three defeats and a washed-out affair.
A win for India would ensure a semifinal berth for the two-time champions while extinguishing the slimmest hopes for the Tigers.
The India-Bangladesh contests have, in recent past, produced some nail-biting finishes and heated moments both on and off the pitch, and given the hig stakes of this match, it would be a surprise if this one goes without any incident.
-With The Daily Star input
