India v Bangladesh Prediction: Why we’re Skybound in Gwalior in the first T20i

It’s the first T20I between India and Bangladesh at Gwalior, following on from India’s dramatic against-the-clock win in the second Test this week, and it’s a match broadcast live on TNT Sports 1 with a start time of 14:30

Jamie Pacheco is putting faith in India skipper and Number two-ranked T20I batsman in the world Sky Yadav for India top bat at 13/5, and old head Hardik Pandya to do the business with the ball in his India vs Bangladesh Predictions for Sunday's match...

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India 

A quick reminder that we'll no longer see Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja play T20Is as they retired after this year's World Cup, while Shubman Gill, Yashavi Jaiswal, Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested.  

The absences of Gill and Jaiswal mean that they've only picked one natural opener in Abishek Sharma, so it will be interesting to see who walks out alongside him at the start of the innings. Maybe Sanju Samson?  

All eyes on Mayank Yadav, who was bowling in excess of 150kph at the start of this year's IPL before getting injured after two games and not featuring in the rest of the competition. That he picked up two man-of-the-match awards in those two games is, his lightning pace aside, the reason why all eyes are on him.  

Hardik Pandya has been called up, adding experience and versatility, while Sky Yadav leads the side.   

Possible XI:  Abishek Sharma, Samson, Sky Yadav, Parag, Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Sundar, Arshdeep, Bishnoi, Rana.  

Bangladesh  

There's no Shakib Al-Hasan anymore. He announced his retirement from both Tests and T20Is over the last couple of days.  

To some it may seem a huge loss and that a big hole will need to be filled, to others who have followed Bangladesh's fortunes closely over the last couple of years, it may not be such a bad thing after all.  

At best he's seemed disinterested of late after making over 450 appearances for his country, his debut coming almost 20 years ago. At worst, he's been a passenger who either can't, or can't be bothered, to keep on doing what made him one of the game's premium all-rounders. But enough about Shakib.  

There's no Mushfiqur Rahim or Tamim Iqbal either but 38-year-old Mahmudullah is still around.  

Najmul Hussain Shanto is the captain with Mehidi Hasan Miraz a key player with both bat and ball, and in many ways, Shakib's successor.  

Possible XI: Das, Hasan, Shanto, Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Mahmudullah, Mehidi Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Sakib, Rahman.  

Pitch and conditions  

Gwalior hasn't been used as an international ground since 2010 and has only ever hosted 12 ODIs in its history.  

But that's not where this match will be played as it will take place at the newly built Shrimant Madhavrao Scindia Stadium on the outskirts of the city.  

The old ground was where Sachin Tendulkar scored the first-ever double hundred in ODIs in 2010.  

India vs Bangladesh 1st T20 Odds

1/10 India plays 11/2 Bangladesh. 

There will be those who may argue that in T20 cricket one big knock with the bat or one great spell with the ball can turn a game on its head and that such big pre-match prices should be snapped up.  

A theory strengthened somewhat by the fact that India are missing several important players, in addition to the three huge names who retired in the summer.  

But India keep beating the Tigers time and again in this format (and the other formats, as well), irrespective of who they pick. They're 14 from the last 15 against Bangladesh in the shortest format, which tells you all you need to know.  

India Top Batsman  

13/5 may at first glance seem a somewhat short price about a batsman to top score in this most volatile of formats.  

That is, until we remember that Sky Yadav is the Number 2 ranked T20I batsman in the world (behind Travis Head whose tour of Scotland England and recently boosted his numbers while Sky had his feet up) and was ranked Number 1 for long periods before that.  

His numbers speak for themselves: 68 T20I innings have yielded four centuries and 20 fifties at an average of 42 with a strike rate of 168; mind-boggling numbers.  

But the other reason we like Sky here is many of his rivals aren't around, leaving the inexperienced Abishek and Samson (probably) batting out of position, as the main threats for him to beat. Sky it is.