Bhubaneswar: KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma are in the middle to open the innings for India, which is looking to seal a semi-final spot at the T20 World Cup after its last defeat to South Africa, after Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan won the toss and decided to field first at Adelaide on Wednesday.
India bought back Axar Patel to the XI in place of Deepak Hooda. The playing XI includes R Sharma (c), K L Rahul, V Kohli, S Yadav, D Karthik (wk), H Pandya, A Patel, R Ashwin, A Singh, B Kumar and M Shami.
“We would have batted first. Runs on the board would matter. We would look to bat well. All games are important in this format. We didn’t play well in the last game. Hopefully, we can play some good cricket and get those two points. Good ground and a good atmosphere here. Good weather as well. We have one change. Axar is in for Hooda,” said skipper Rohit Sharma.
The team has to win the remaining two matches for a place in the final four and keep alive their quest for a first world title since the 2013 Champions Trophy.
Giving his reason for opting to bowl, Hasan said: “There is a prediction for rain. We don’t know what is a good score on this wicket. It is a big game and we are well prepared today.”
