T20 World Cup 2024: India, led by Rohit Sharma, will meet a faltering Bangladesh in their second match of the Super Eight round of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, Antigua, on Saturday. A victory is crucial for India to edge closer to a semi-final berth, while Najmul Hossain Shanto’s Bangladesh side also needs a win to remain strong contenders for the knockouts. Although India dominates the overall head-to-head record, Bangladesh has a reputation for being unpredictable, which Sharma and his team must be wary of.
Bangladesh suffered a loss to Australia in their rain-affected Super Eight opener in Antigua on June 20. The match was interrupted by rain multiple times, reducing playing time significantly. The quick turnaround gives Bangladesh less than 48 hours before facing India at the same venue. The question remains: will rain affect the India vs. Bangladesh clash as well?
According to Accuweather, there is a 40% chance of precipitation on June 22, the match day. The match is scheduled to begin at 10:30 AM local time (8:00 PM IST). In the morning, there are 40% chances of rain with complete cloud cover, decreasing to 23% in the afternoon, with 99% cloud cover. The afternoon is expected to be cloudy and breezy.
10:00 AM (7:30 PM IST): 46% chance of rain
11:00 AM (8:30 PM IST): 51% chance of rain
12:00 PM (9:30 PM IST): 47% chance of rain
1:00 PM (10:30 PM IST): 32% chance of rain
2:00 PM (11:30 PM IST): 32% chance of rain
3:00 PM (7:30 PM IST): 36% chance of rain
If the match is washed out, both teams will earn a point each as there are no reserve days for the Super Eight clashes. India, having won their opening match against Afghanistan by 47 runs, currently sits in second place in the points table. Australia leads with a superior net run rate. A washout would give India a point, moving them to the top of the table. However, their clash against Australia would become crucial, especially if Afghanistan wins both of their remaining games against Australia and Bangladesh.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Bangladesh Squad: Tanzid Hasan, Litton Das (w), Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Towhid Hridoy, Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah, Rishad Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mustafizur Rahman, Jaker Ali, Tanvir Islam, Shoriful Islam, Soumya Sarkar.