Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza, who is part of a four-man pace attack, won the toss and opted to bowl on a noticeably green pitch in the Asia Cup opener in Mirpur. It had rained on and off during the day and there is a warning that some light showers may arrive later in night, but the match looked set to begin under clear skies.
The other uncertainty pertaining to this game was cleared when MS Dhoni walked out for the toss. He had contracted some back spasms during training on Monday, but the team management had said he was “recovering well.” Even enough to take the keeping gloves.
So, India’s only change was Virat Kohli, coming back from a break, after consultation with the physio Patrick Farhat. He replaced Ajinkya Rahane from the XI that played the third T20 against Sri Lanka in Visakhapatnam.
Bangladesh brought in batsman Mohammad Mithun on the basis of his work at a training camp in Chittagong. He generally plays in the top order, but has been listed at No. 8. Imrul Kayes takes over the vacant opening spot from Tamim Iqbal who is on paternity leave. Shakib Al Hasan, Mahmudullah and Sabbir Rahman make up the spin options while Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed will lead the pace attack along with their captain and Al-Amin Hossain.
