MIRPUR: Crowd favourites Bangladesh will square off with crown favourites India in the Asia Cup final on Sunday. Expect a packed house at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, with tickets for the contest selling out in record time. A day before the big game, both sides displayed intensity, purpose and hunger as they engaged in practice stretching for well over two hours.
The home side, however, have some big injury worries. Already missing the services of pacer Mustafizur Rahman, who has been ruled out with a side strain, there was more bad news late on Saturday with Shakib Al Hasan looking a doubtful starter.
“Shakib sustained a hipflex injury during practice on Friday. It is commonly known as thigh muscle. We are still monitoring his progress. He did feel a bit of pain on Saturday and didn’t practice for long. We will take a call on whether to play him or not on Sunday,” said a team official.
Going by form and ranking, India start off favourites, but MS Dhoni’s team – the No. 1 side in T20s – is aware the tag won’t matter much in a format where fortunes swing in a matter of deliveries. Despite dishing out a flawless performance so far, Dhoni feels there is scope for improvement. “We will have to be consistent in big games. We will have to come up with another big performance (in the final). Bangladesh are a good team and they have improved a lot,” he said.(Agencies)
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