India got off to a dream start in their ongoing Champions Trophy opening fixture against Bangladesh in Dubai. Sent into the field first, pacers Mohammed Shami and Harshit Rana started with a bang as they picked up two wickets and one wicket in the opening 10 overs. While the former sent Soumya Sarkar (0) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (5), the latter dismissed Bangladeshi skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto for a duck. India's opening bowlers got enough seam and swing movement, which the Bangladeshi top-order batters failed to negate early on.
After winning the toss and opting to bat first, Shanto and the rest of the top-order batters could not put on an assertive start on a good Dubai pitch. All the three batters dismissed were guilty of playing a loose shot and gifting their wickets away. Shami was terrific, as he managed to hit the right lengths and generated enough seam movement. Meanwhile, Rana has also looked good so far, supporting his senior partner by bowling economically.
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Tanzid Hasan, the only Bangladeshi batter who looked, also departed for (25) as Axar Patel struck in his first over twice, as after the wicket of the former, he dismissed Mushfiqur Rahim for a duck.
Advantage India, as Bangladesh off to a sloppy start
Before India's Champions Trophy opening fixture against Bangladesh, there were questions regarding Shami's form after coming back from a long injury layoff. While he played three ODIs against England, the veteran seemed off-color. However, in the match against Bangladesh, the 34-year-old was right on the money in the first over.
The inclusion of Rana ahead of Arshdeep Singh has also so far proven to be a good move. The former now should look to make the most of his good start up front.
Also, the introduction of Axar Patel proved to be a masterstroke by skipper Rohit Sharma in the power play. His twin strikes as firmly put India in control of the game against Bangladesh.
