Heat will be on Tonight
It is going to be another big night. There are two matches scheduled for tonight in which Pakistan takes on Bangladesh in group 2 and West Indies faces England in group 1.
PAK vs BAN (3pm local time, 8.30pm AEDT)
Pakistan will have to face a morally boosted Bangladesh after going down to them in Asia Cup just a few days ago.
When Bangladesh walks into Kokata’s Eden Gardens for the first time since 1990 looking to repeat the performance, Pakistan has a bigger task of proving themselves as a team and silencing their critics back home.
Pak team will be highly dependent on the all-round skills of skipper Shahid Afridi, and they need some solid batting display from Sarfraz Ahmed, Shoaib Malik or Umar Akmal. Their bowling attack led by Mohammed Amir, Wahab Riaz and Mohammed Irfan is fast enough to rip through any batting line up.
On the other hand, Bangladesh looks more confident on Indian soil, especially after Tamim Iqbal’s century against Oman in the group stage. While Mustafizur Rahman’s fitness is still a concern, Bangladesh will rely om the bowling performance of Al Amin Hossain who is at No. 6 in world rankings.
ENG vs WI (7.30pm local time, 1.00am AEDT)
In the other match, England and West Indies come face to face at Mumbai’s Wankhade stadium.
West Indies comes to the game with more experience, especially on Indian conditions , thanks to IPL. Eight members of their squad are above 30, and players like Chris Gayle have proved how dangerous they could be on Indian wickets, as described by captain Darren Sammy in the pre-match press conference.
On the other hand, England will depend on the freshness of attack. Eoin Morgan is the only man in the squad with IPL experience. The big hitting batsmen will be the key to England’s chance of success tonight.
