ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Bangladesh test for Indians

Dubai: The steady pitter-patter that characterised most of the second half of Tuesday gave way to a bright Wednesday, the reasonably mild February sun occasionally enveloped in wispy, high clouds. Consequently, the manic traffic snarls, not unlike those in Bengaluru, were a thing of the past, though snarls of a different kind might be in store when the Dubai leg of the Champions Trophy kicks off on Thursday afternoon.

The hybrid model that the second most prestigious 50-over tournament in the world has been forced to adopt has stemmed from India’s expected refusal to travel to Pakistan. India will therefore play all their Group A matches at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, starting with a Thursday showdown against prickly foes Bangladesh.

Their ODI head-to-heads is remarkably skewed, India winning 32 matches to Bangladesh’s eight in 41 faceoffs. That’s what makes it doubly astonishing that the Bangladeshis have won three of the last five games between the sides, though that will not count for even bragging rights when the teams get their Champions Trophy campaign underway.

India are the top-ranked 50-over side in the world, Bangladesh are currently No. 9. Rohit Sharma’s men are coming off a 3-0 rout of England at home last week, while their eastern neighbours’ last international outing was a disastrous 0-3 loss in the Caribbean in December. Najmul Hossain Shanto’s side was also well beaten by Pakistan Shaheens in a warm-up game at the ICC Academy grounds on Monday, all of which suggest that the odds are in India’s favour.

But there is something about playing against India that, current form and overall record notwithstanding, rouses Bangladesh into action. Neither nation has forgotten 2007 and Port of Spain, for entirely different reasons. A young Bangladeshi side stunned Rahul Dravid’s India in the 50-over World Cup, a result that catalysed one of the tournament favourites’ elimination at the first stage itself. India have extracted sweet revenge numerous times subsequently, but that loss is still hard to swallow for those intricately involved with Indian cricket.

Bangladesh have pushed India close in T20 World Cups, notably in Bengaluru in 2016 and Adelaide in 2022, without getting past the finishing line though in the longer limited-overs format, they haven’t made as much of an impact in global competitions. They are without the retired duo of former captains Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan and are heavily reliant on the experience and class of two other ex-skippers, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who have tilted at the Indian windmill with mixed results in the past.

Like most top teams, India have tended to internalise rather than focus too much on the opposition, and they will believe they have most bases covered as they chase a second Champions Trophy crown in three editions. Admittedly, Jasprit Bumrah is impossible to replace but India have the depth and class to not allow themselves to be caught up in the ‘what ifs’, especially with Mohammed Shami approaching top gear on his umpteenth comeback from injury. The comprehensive conquest of the English came with the added bonuses of their inspirational captain shaking off a lean trot with a blazing 32nd ODI ton and his equally beleaguered predecessor, Virat Kohli, ending the series with a measured but important half-century.

For all the wealth of batting riches that Rohit can summon, India will look to their two talismans to lead the charge at the top of the order. The profusion of all-rounder options – Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and, if need be, Washington Sundar – is an insurance against the rush of wickets that can sometimes be an organic fallout of an aggression-only approach, while the spin cupboard, supplemented by the presence of wristies Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy, is both brimful and versatile.