Australia look to extend dominance over deflated Bangladesh

Australia opened their World T20 2016 campaign with an 8-run defeat against New Zealand © Getty

Similar yet so very different - the underlying theme of the Group 2 clash between Bangladesh and Australia, to be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Monday (March 21). Similar because both teams come into the fixture at the back of defeats. Another reverse would severely debilitate the losing team's chances of making out of an intricately poised group. Different because while Australia have acknowledged the predicament caused by the New Zealand defeat, Bangladesh's strategy has been thrown off following suspensions to their lead pacer Taskin Ahmed and the left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny.
On the eve of the match, even as a relatively subdued Bangladesh went about their drills at the 'B' ground of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) Stadium, Australia chose to stay put in their hotel room, presumably to conserve energy ahead of what promises to be a hectic couple of weeks. The conditions in Bengaluru are not alien to their players - short boundaries, true pitch, lots of runs. There are, however, question marks, over the T20 pedigree of this side. Steven Smith has adopted a 'flexibility' mantra for his side. This has led to a batting order reshuffle and unclear role definitions for the playing eleven, clearly disturbing the balance of the side.
If a bulk of the Australian players have Indian Premier League (IPL) experience to moot, Bangladesh's players have an 'A' tour of India late last year, one that featured several of the senior team members, to thank for their apparent familiarity with the conditions. Mashrafe Mortaza's men couldn't have asked for a better time to play an Australian side still grappling with the idea of T20 combinations, but off-field developments threaten to leave them under-cooked for a crucial clash.
When: Australia vs Bangladesh, March 21, Group 2 - 19:00 IST
Where: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru
What to expect: A stark contrast to what Australia encountered in Dharamsala - Lower altitude, easy-paced wicket and certainly no hailstorms.
Team News:
Australia
Aaron Finch was Australia's T20 captain barely two months ago. Steven Smith took over in order to ensure continuity after the former picked up a hamstring injury. As luck would have it, when the Super 10 phase of the World T20 got underway this past week, he was the one giving up his spot as the selectors sought to fit Shane Watson and Usman Khawaja in the top-order. A return to the top of the order for the former captain would be mooted as would the inclusion of Josh Hazlewood in place of the second spinner, Ashton Agar, who infamously conceded 18 in his opening over against a marauding Martin Guptill.
Bangladesh
"Even if Mustafizur Rahman is 20% fit, he will have to play. We have no options," opined a sombre-looking Mortaza on the eve of the match. With two of his best bowlers suspended, Bangladesh's biggest challenge would be to stitch together a bowling unit that can serve the rigors of bowling on a surface that comes with a reputation for being rather unkind to the bowlers. Mustafizur will return for the first time since sustaining a side strain in the Asia Cup encounter against Sri Lanka, and Nasir Hossain, who scored a 100 and a bagged five-fer in of the one-dayers during the A tour could take up Sunny's spot.
What they said:
Steven Smith: It's a tough group, there are some very good sides in our group. Obviously we didn't start as well as we would have liked the other night against New Zealand. It's in the past now. We know what we need to do now - we need to win every game we play if we want to win the World Cup.
Mashrafe Mortaza: He (Chandrika Hathurasinghe) knows a lot about the Australian players during his time with New South Wales. Obviously, we will be seeking a lot of tips from him. The plans are there but the main thing is to execute them. We know that Australia can destroy any team.
Did you know?
- Australia have won all their three games, all coming in World T20s, against Bangladesh in T20Is
- Australia have lost six of their last seven matches in World T20. Their only win came against Bangladesh in 2014.
- Australia are yet to win a T20I in India. They have lost to India in 2007 & 2013 and to New Zealand at Dharamsala on Friday
- The average score batting first in the last five completed T20 matches at Chinnaswamy Stadium is 199
- 8, 7, 4, 2, 1, 13 - Shane Watson's last six scores in World T20. In the four matches prior to it he scored 51, 41*, 72 & 70 and won four consecutive Man of the Match awards.
Squads:
Australia: Steve Smith (captain), David Warner, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Peter Nevill, Andrew Tye, Shane Watson, Adam Zampa
Bangladesh: Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Shakib Al Hasan, Abu Hider, Al-Amin Hossain, Mahmudullah, Mohammad Mithun, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Soumya Sarkar, Tamin Iqbal, Saqlain Sajib, Shuvagoto Hom  source    cricbuzz