India look to complete '5-0' series sweep over Bangladesh

Delhi's heat has given way to some welcome showers in Hyderabad, but that might be the only surprise in store for this dead-rubber, with another belter of a track expected for the clash. Delhi was an evidence of how the gap between the teams seemed to widen on a flatter pitch and that trend could continue in Hyderabad, offering little respite to the visitors.

For India, with the series already sealed, the third and final T20I feels like an opportunity to test their bench strength. But don't expect a lack of intensity. Gautam Gambhir's competitive spirit is well known and assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate made it clear that the team has its sights set on a "5-0" clean sweep.

"Ideally yes, we want to finish with a win obviously. The messaging again from Gauti [Gautam Gambhir], the importance of each game playing for your country and also putting yourself under pressure every time. So there is absolutely no talk about not putting that as the focus for tomorrow. We want to win and complete a 5-0 series," Ryan said.

While India might have little to gain from this match, Bangladesh have much to lose. Their best day on the tour remains the opening day of the opening Test in Chennai, when the pacers dismantled India's top order in favourable conditions, and they are yet to cross the finishing line on this trip to India. Finishing on a winning note would be high up on their agenda, especially with one of their veterans in Mahmudullah saying goodbye to the format.

When: 3rd T20I, October 12, 2024, 7:00 PM local

Where: Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad

What to expect: A whole lot of runs. The venue in Uppal has hosted 14 T20s since 2022 (13 IPL + 1 T20I), and there's an equal split between sides choosing to bat first and second. The average first-inning total in those 14 games has been 188, which swells up to 199 in victories.

The teams may have some wet weather to contend with. India's practice session on the eve of the match was interrupted due to rain and there are more showers predicted for game day. The good news is that the venue has some excellent drainage.

Team news:

INDIA

Ryan ten Doeschate confirmed that Sanju Samson will get another hit at the top. Moreover, fast bowler Harshit Rana is in line for a debut. Ravi Bishnoi might get a game after seeing India go with Varun Chakaravarthy for the first couple of matches. India play a T20I next on November 8 in Durban, so they might stick to having Hardik Pandya in the side.

Probable XI: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Nitish Reddy, Hardik Pandya/Jitesh Sharma, Riyan Parag, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana

Tactics & Matchups: Like in Delhi, India might want to get in more overs from their part-time bowlers. But while they bat, watch out for Abhishek Sharma, who was a revelation playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the last IPL season. At this venue, the left-handed opener has 324 runs at a strike-rate of over 203.

BANGLADESH

The visitors could bring in Mahedi Hasan, who had an extended workout in the middle on match eve.

Probable XI: Parvez Hossain Emon, Litton Das(w), Najmul Hossain Shanto(c), Towhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah, Jaker Ali/Mahedi Hasan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mustafizur Rahman

Tactics & Matchups: Litton Das is a bit of a worry for Bangladesh. He has only one fifty-plus score in his last eight innings and the next-highest score he's made is 16. But he remains one of the only batters in their ranks who's capable of muscling the ball and taking Bangladesh to a power score.

Did you know?

- Sanju Samson has an IPL hundred at this venue, scored back in 2019

- India have won 15 of the 16 T20Is between the sides

- Mahmudullah will finish his T20I career with 141 caps. Shakib Al Hasan is the next most experienced player for them in the format, with 129 caps.

What they said

A little bit like when we got to Delhi the other day, you don't want to read too much into the data. We probably feel that those first three wickets we lost was maybe going a little bit hard. The wicket was a little bit sticky in Delhi. So we will have a look at this wicket. We are aware of the high-scoring nature of this pitch during the IPL but also we are five months away from the IPL now so conditions could change as well. - Ryan ten Doeschate, India assistant coach

We have a very different way of looking at things. We played against the best team in the world, India. If we measure pure outcome, there are a lot of countries with bad tours in India. What we have to look at is the learning, we have to look at the future of what we have coming up with the champions trophy, T20s and we have to look at the end of some of the legends that are finishing for Bangladesh. We look at the tour in a very different way. - Nic Pothas, Bangladesh assistant coach