Match Details
Date: 14-18 December 2022
Time : 9 AM IST
Venue : Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chattogram
Ball-by-ball commentary : SportsTiger App
Preview
India lost the three-match ODI series 1-2 but a change in format will make the Men in Blue happy. Test cricket has been India’s best format in the past few years with them dominating almost every team. But this year has not been that good for India, especially when they have played away from home. India lost to South Africa and then England. These defeats caused a serious dent in India’s qualification chances for the World Test Championship Final. Now, they have to win every game to stay alive in the contest. Bangladesh, on the other hand, will look to just spoil India’s party.
Pitch Report
The Chattogram pitch was an absolute belter when the two teams played the third ODI. It is expected to remain the same way during the Test match. However, as it’s a five-day game, the pitch is expected to deteriorate in the spin bowlers’ favour. Pacers will have to grind hard to extract something out of it.
Team Analysis
India
India will be without the services of many of their main players. Captain Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, and Mohammed Shami are not available. However, India still have enough resources to take down Bangladesh. While KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, and Rishabh Pant will be the key batters for India, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, and R Ashwin will be expected to shoulder the responsibility with the ball in hand. Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer will also be crucial for India. Meanwhile, Saurabh Kumar will have all the attention of the left-arm orthodox gets a chance.
SportsTiger Playing XI of India
KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, R Ashwin, Saurabh Kumar, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
Bangladesh
The Tigers, under Litton Das, created history in the ODI series but the real Test is still left. Bangladesh have selected a good squad with Shakib Al Hasan at the helm of affairs. The hosts have a good mix of experience and youth. While Shakib, Mushfiqur Rahim, and Litton Das will hold the key with the bat for Bangladesh, Ebadot Hossain, Shoriful Islam, and Mehidy Hasan Miraz will be the key bowlers for the Tigers. Mehidy Hasan will be the player in focus after his heroics in the ODI series. Meanwhile, Shoriful Islam is expected to trouble the Indian batters upfront in absence of Taskin Ahmed.
SportsTiger Playing XI of Bangladesh
Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan (C), Litton Das, Nurul Hasan Sohan (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, Shoriful Islam, Ebadot Hossain
Match Prediction
Conclusion
Bangladesh had a good ODI series, but Test cricket is a different format altogether. India may be without their best bowlers but they still have a very good attack which is capable of holding back this Bangladesh team. India’s batting is also notch ahead of their counterparts and hence the KLL Rahul-led team is expected to win the match.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the author’s point of view. They neither reflect the opinion of SportsTiger nor advise anyone to make any prediction based on this. SportsTiger does not assume any responsibility and liability for the same.
