In-form India face Bangladesh in Champions Trophy: Match Preview
The UAE leg of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy commences with an encounter between India and Bangladesh.
India, the finalists at the most recent edition of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup and winners of last year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup, will look to make an impact in the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy from the word go, by getting one over Bangladesh in their tournament starter.
The side are no strangers to success in the global event, having previously secured title wins in 2002 (co-winners with Sri Lanka), and 2013.
But this time around, Rohit Sharma’s side will be without their finest bowling asset, Jasprit Bumrah, and have banked on a spin-heavy setup to get the job done for them in the tournament.
Their opponents first-up are also good exponents of spin, and have the capacity to dish out a surprise in big events. The Tigers will take inspiration from their 2007 heroics against India, and will back their experienced players to come good on Thursday.
All on the Line Preview | BAN v IND | Champions Trophy 2025
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Bangladesh: Nazmul Hossain Shanto (c), Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Tawhid Hridoy, Mushfiqur Rahim, MD Mahmud Ullah, Jaker Ali Anik, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Parvez Hossain Emon, Nasum Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Nahid Rana.
Recent form:
India: The tournament fancies enter the Champions Trophy in fine touch, after a wildly successful recent white-ball run against England. Hosts India clean-swept the visitors 3-0 in the ODI series that recently ended.
Before that, India handled England comfortably in the pair’s five-game T20I series, winning 4-1. Those seven wins, all in the last month, should amount to a confident feeling inside the squad.
Bangladesh: Reading the form isn’t as straightforward with the Tigers. The national side hasn’t played any cricket since December, when they toured the West Indies.
Bangladesh were comprehensively beaten in the three-match ODI series with the Windies, losing 3-0. They saved face somewhat by claiming all three T20Is in the Caribbean that followed the One-Day International cricket. In November, before they toured the West Indies, Bangladesh went down 2-1 to Afghanistan in an ODI series in the UAE.
Players in focus:
India: Arshdeep Singh
With Jasprit Bumrah unavailable for India, there will be added spotlight on the team’s bowling attack. But heading into the tournament, there’s optimism 26-year-old left-armer Arshdeep Singh can handle new ball duties and potentially step into the incredibly large shoes left by Jasprit, who is recovering from a back injury.
The rise of Arshdeep Singh:
From winning the 2018 U19 World Cup to starring for India in the 2022 T20 World Cup, Arshdeep Singh has always looked destined for big things! Hear what his coach and teammates have to say about the up-and-coming pace sensation.
Bangladesh: Mehidy Hasan Miraz
The 27-year-old all-rounder is at the peak of his powers and will need to deliver in all departments for the Tigers to make a dent at the Champions Trophy. From the aforementioned West Indies tour in December, Mehidy Hasan Miraz smoked 152 runs across three ODIs with an average of 50.66, striking at 84.91. He also claimed eight combined wickets across the T20I series in the Caribbean.
How to watch:
India: JioStar (Live streaming on Jio Hotstar, Television coverage on Star and Network 18 channels)
Pakistan: PTV and Ten Sports, Streaming options: Myco and Tamasha app
UAE and MENA: CricLife Max and CricLife Max2, Streaming option: STARZPLAY
UK: Live broadcasting on Sky Sports Cricket, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Action, Digital coverage via SkyGO, NOW and Sky Sports App
USA and Canada: WillowTV, Streaming on Willow by Cricbuzz app (Hindi coverage available)
Caribbean: ESPNCaribbean on TV, Streaming via ESPN Play Caribbean app
Australia: PrimeVideo (coverage available in Hindi too)
New Zealand: Sky Sport NZ, digital coverage via Now and SkyGo app.
South Africa and sub-Saharan territories: SuperSport and SuperSport App
Bangladesh: Nagorik TV and T Sports for linear broadcast, digital via Toffee app
Afghanistan: ATN
Sri Lanka: Maharaja TV (TV1 on Linear), Digital via Sirasa
The games can also be viewed on ICC.tv (In select territories)
