DHAKA — Bangladesh is hoping to cause a major upset in the Asia Cup final here Sunday by spoiling favorite India’s preparations for the World Twenty20, which starts next week.
Top-ranked India crushed Bangladesh by 45 runs in the opening match of the tournament, but the host has since executed a turnaround, winning three matches on the trot to qualify for the final.
Bangladesh’s five-wicket win over Pakistan Wednesday, watched by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from a packed gallery, sparked jubilation in the cricket-mad nation.
“Any good team, if they are the home team, they will always know the conditions very well. So to beat a home team is always difficult,” Indian captain MS Dhoni told reporters.
“Also Bangladesh, over the years has developed a lot. They have improved their strength,” said the skipper, predicting: “It will be a good final.”
Dhoni’s side, the pre-tournament favorite, defeated the UAE by nine wickets Thursday to end the league phase with a 100 percent success rate.
India — which has won nine of its last 10 Twenty20 Internationals — will start the final as favorite, but Dhoni said nothing could be taken for granted, especially in the shortest format of international cricket.
His side is five-time winner of the Asia Cup, which takes place every two years, although India’s winning meets were all held in the previous 50-over One-Day International format.
“In this format the difference between the two teams can often be just one knock, one individual having a very good day or one bowler having a very good day,” Dhoni said.
“The difference between a good team and not-so-good team can be just a performance on that particular day.”
Dhoni, whose illustrious trophy case includes one Asia Cup from 2010, would like to end the 12-day meet on a high before India hosts the World Cup T20 Championship starting on March 8.
Host Bangladesh has qualified for the Asia Cup final only once in 2012, when it lost to Pakistan at home by just two runs.
“For us it’s obvious to be emotional because we don’t always get such chances and this is happening at home,” Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza said Saturday.
Clashes broke out Saturday between police and hundreds of fans queuing for tickets, local Bangladesh media reported.
Police fired tear gas to disperse the fans, according to the online edition of Prothom Alo, a Bengali-language daily.
Earlier, paceman Taskin Ahmed had appeared determined to make India’s job difficult in Sunday’s match.
“India without a doubt is one of the best teams in the world,” Taskin told reporters Thursday.
“But if we can play up to our potential, good things are possible. I would say it’s a 50-50 game.”
Indian team director Ravi Shastri said that a boisterous crowd would not be a problem for his side in the final.
“We’re used to noise,” Shastri said Saturday. “Who cares? When you play at that level, you are immune to that.”
Teams:
Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (capt.), Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Imrul Kayes, Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Nasir Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Taskin Ahmed Abu Hider, Al-Amin Hossain and Arafat Sunny.
India: MS Dhoni (capt.), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Pawan Negi and Ashish Nehra.
