India vs Bangladesh, T20 World Cup: Men in Blue rally, show class and cohesion that make them the team they are

It hasn’t always been that India have shown their teeth in every match. There have been times, as they were against South Africa, when they looked disorganised and feckless, totally out of sorts against an assault they had no answers to.

They were under attack in Adelaide as well, as Litton Das threatened to take it all away from the Indians, leaving them still searching for those elusive points that would take them through to the ICC T20 World Cup semi-finals.

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But the weather intervention and subsequent redeployment of overs and target seemed to boost the Indians dramatically, after the batters had delivered, not least the welcome contribution from KL Rahul. All of that summed up in another tight match but India managed to hold their nerves and beat Bangladesh by five runs to garner two crucial points.

Rahul was one of the success stories of Wednesday’s game, and it would be a massive relief to both him and the team, since it is imperative that the top batters get consistent starts.

Brilliant from Kl Rahul. Indian batting looks more formidable now!

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) November 2, 2022

Then of course, there was the inimitable Virat Kohli, playing with rediscovered zen where nothing is a matter for concern, not least scoring rapid runs. His innings, once again, was a masterclass on how to keep calm, especially in the crisis moments at the beginning of the innings and the subsequent slew of smaller scores later on, as India strived for a big total.

Suryakumar Yadav too is something else, and was on this day too, though India would have loved more runs from him.

But India played one of their most complete games when it was needed the most. The rain break was fortuitous, for sure, as the rampaging Das’ momentum was halted. India rallied brilliantly after the break and Bangladesh were never really let in.

The fielding flourished when it mattered the most. The Bangladesh players got desperate as the asking rate grew and several batters skied the cricket ball. Not one of those chances was floored with Yadav snaring two easily and Deepak Hooda and Arshdeep doing their part.

Read: From fiery start to falling narrowly short, how Bangladesh lost the plot

It got tight towards the end, for sure, but the Indian fielders and bowlers did enough to keep their wits about them. This is where champions can be made or broken.

Kohli’s template of batting, the new one, is a revelation. He invariably takes his time initially, going largely at run-a-ball. Quite frequently, he has had to do this because of the dents made by the rival bowling up front, with the top batters being dismissed early.

But Wednesday was a little different in terms of the contribution from the top batters. Rahul started getting rapid runs after the initial hesitation and thereafter found the gaps with impunity.

Kohli orchestrated the mid-innings assault, and even though India lost some quick wickets, the team managed to get enough runs which had a telling effect on the last few overs of the game when Bangladesh were trying to score big.

Towards the end, India possibly could have scored a few more. Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Axar Patel weren’t quite on the boil but with Kohli going great guns and Ravichandran Ashwin cracking a few to the ropes and beyond, India got enough.

There was no doubt that India batting first was a lucky break, since they would have been in the same situation as Bangladesh had they gone in second, and with the top order not always in great nick, that could have been a critical difference.

Nevertheless, it still boiled down to the last over and Arshdeep did well to keep his wits even after being clattered for a boundary early on. There have instances in the past when he has had to defend much fewer runs, so this would have been in his comfort zone and he managed it fine.

 

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One great plus for India also is how Rohit Sharma and Kohli are communicating. Two of India’s stars are always in one another’s ear, exchanging ideas and suggestions as the side goes through its campaign. Nothing better if the top men are gelling and communicating, since many a side has cracked and fallen apart after ego trips have made inroads into it.

A good win, the kind of stuff that hardens sides. A challenge from stiffer teams is to be expected but if a side can rally from being behind a lower-ranked team, that is not only good for the morale but also the best management training under fire. Hopefully India’s lessons will come good in the rest of the tournament.

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