Bangladesh vs India, BAN vs IND, Today Match Prediction 14 December 2022

ban vs ind Match Prediction & Analysis

After a rare ODI series win against India, Bangladesh is all geared up to take the Test challenge in the 2 Tests series. The first Test will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chattogram, between 14-18 December from 9:30 am onwards. The Indian team will look forward to keeping their unbeaten record against Bangladesh in the Tests. 

Both teams will be playing the longest format against each other after a gap of 3 years. The last time both teams played a day and night Test was at Eden Gardens. India won the Test by an innings and 46 runs. Batting first, Bangladesh were restricted to 106 after a five-for from Ishant Sharma. Virat Kohli’s 136 led India to declare the innings on 347 for the loss of 9 wickets. Umesh Yadav took 5 wickets in the second innings to register an easy victory for India.

India are currently placed fourth in the ICC Test Championship points table, with 6 wins, 4 losses, and 2 draws. They must win 5 of their last 6 Tests to qualify for the Final. On the other hand, Bangladesh are at the bottom of the table with just 1 win in 10 Tests of this cycle. The hosts have lost 4 of their last 5 Tests and have drawn one.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Bangladesh Preview

22 years since playing their first Test, Bangladesh are yet to find it difficult to adjust to the longest format of cricket. This time, the situation worsened with their leading run scorer Tamim Iqbal ruling out the first Test. Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Najmul Hossain Shanto will open the innings. The pair have a collective average of 22 in the last 10 tests. This can be an advantage for India to put early pressure on the hosts.

In the middle, Litton Das and Mushfiqur Rahim are Bangladesh’s best bets against India. Litton Das is their leading run-scorer of the ICC Test Championship with 883 runs in 10 Tests at an average of 49.06. He has scored 3 centuries and 5 half-centuries in the last 18 innings. Rahim has a better understanding of playing against India. The wicket-keeper has 518 runs in Tests against India at an average of 51.80 with 2 centuries and 2 half centuries. 

Skipper Shakib Al Hasan will lead the bowling attack with Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam, and Ebadot Hossain. Taijul Islam is leading the bowling charts for Bangladesh with 24 wickets in 5 Tests of the Championship cycle at an economy of 2.75. He will be our choice for the best bowler. Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who finished as a player in the ODI series, has 22 wickets at an economy of 2.70. If he continues his form in this format, India will have difficulty keeping their record alive.

Bangladesh have added Zakir Hasan to the 15-member squad. The T20 specialist has more than 4000 runs in 106 innings since making his debut in the first class. He has scored 13 centuries and 14 half-centuries at an average of 41.27. He can get a chance to debut.

Key Players: Litton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim, Taijul Islam.

Bangladesh Predicted Playing XI:

Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mominul Haque, Litton Das, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Nurul Hasan (wk), Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Khaled Ahmed, Ebadot Hossain, Taijul Islam, Zakir Hasan.

Bangladesh Actual Playing XI:

Nurul Hasan, Ebadot Hossain, Litton Das, Khaled Ahmed, Taijul Islam, Yasir Ali Choudhary, Zakir Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mehidy Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Najmul Hossain Shanto

India Preview

India last played a Test in the month of July against England. It will be a challenge for skipper KL Rahul to adjust his team to the 5-day format in the absence of Rohit Sharma, Jaspreet Bumrah, and Mohammad Shami. He will open the innings with Shubhman Gill. Both have almost zero experience playing against Bangladesh. While Rahul has played just 2 Tests this year, Gill has been part of just one. All eyes will be glued to Cheteshwar Pujara, who had a mind-blowing county stint this year. Pujara scored 1094 runs in 8 matches at an average of 109.40 with 3 double hundreds and 2 hundred.

Virat Kohli will be eager to take the guard in the middle to keep his form running. After finishing as the Asia Cup’s second leading run-scorer, T20 World Cup’s leading run scorer, Kohli scored a century in the last ODI. Kohli averages above 78 against Bangladesh and has 2 centuries in the 5 innings. Surprisingly, his last century of this format came against Bangladesh three years ago. Shreyas Iyer will likely play with Rishabh Pant in the middle, who has been India’s leading run scorer of this ICC Test Championship cycle. Pant has 636 runs in 8 Tests at an average of 45.43.

India will use Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, and Shardul Thakur as pacers. Though the trio hasn’t played much together, they will still pose a threat to the weak Bangladeshi side. Thakur has 11 wickets in 3 Tests played this year, including a career-best of 7 for 61. Yadav had taken 8 wickets in the last test played against Bangladesh. Ravi Ashwin and Axar Patel will be added as the spinners. Ashwin will have a huge responsibility on his shoulder in the absence of Bumrah and Shami - India’s leading wicket-takers of the ICC WTC.

Key Players: Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin.

India Predicted Playing XI:

KL Rahul (capt), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara (vice-capt), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav.

India Actual Playing XI:

Shreyas Iyer, Lokesh Rahul, Shubman Gill, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Virat Kohli, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Axar Patel

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The weather will be sunny, with no rain. The temperature will range between 17 and 28°C. The wind will be flowing from the west at 10-15 kmh. The pitch assists the spinners as the match enters day 3. Otherwise, Batters enjoy scoring lots of runs.

Venue Details

The 1st Test of the series between Bangladesh and India will be played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chattogram, between 14-18 December from 9:30 am onwards. The venue holds a capacity of 20000 spectators and has hosted 22 Tests, 24 ODIs & 20 T20Is so far. Sri Lanka have recorded the highest total of 713 runs on this ground.

Toss: To Bowl

In the 22 ODIS, 8 teams have won by batting first, while 7 times the luck has favored the team chasing. The average 1st innings score is 371, just 26 runs over the second. In fact, the team chasing the target has won 2 out of the last 3 Tests. The team winning the toss should bowl first.