World Cup 2011: India vs Bangladesh Live Streaming

Streets in Dhaka are abuzz with discussions on the Cricket World Cup 2011 which starts today in the Bangladesh capital. Go to any adda, and the only discussion you will find happening over a hot cuppa tea is that of the India vs Bangladesh match.

Fans here understand that India are a much stronger team, but there is an underlying confidence that they have in their team. Unlike the last time, when the India - Bangladesh match was being seen as a one sided affair (that India lost is a different matter), it is not so the case this time. This one is a much stronger team and with the home advantage, they can only be that much more dangerous.

The match starts in about a few hours from now. You can watch the match live in Bangladesh and India on both Star Cricket and ESPN. In India, Doordarshan will also show the match live. Want to watch the match live streaming? Search on the internet and you will find plenty of websites where you can watch the live cricket action from Dhaka.

Which team are you supporting? We are Indian fans here, but looking forward to some good hitting by Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Ashraful. Sounds good? Why don't you share in the discussion?

Retiring Twins

I'm not exactly very old, but can safely claim to have been following the game of cricket for about 15 years now. But this is the first occasion where I have seen both openers retiring hurt - In the current second test against Bangladesh, at the end of first day's play, India are well placed at 326/0 with both openers, Dinesh Karthik and Wasim Jaffer retired hurt. On crease are no.3 and no.4, captain and vice-captain, Dravid and Tendulkar. Does anyone else remember any precedent?

In better days, it would have been a happy problem

Nayan Mongia, Rahul Dravid, Ajay Jadeja, VVS Laxman, Deep Dasgupta, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag.....

The list is long and illustrious - Indian cricket's opening jinx seems to have no end. Why is it that a nation which keeps producing high quality middle order batsmen struggles to come up with two good openers? Later today, Dinesh Karthik looks likely to join this unending list of make-shift Indian openers. We have specialised in this art of converting middle order batsmen now, so much so that some of them aren't so obvious anymore - Sachin Tendulkar in ODIs and Virender Sehwag in tests. Even Saurav Ganguly, for that matter.

Funnily enough - in the just concluded World Cup the problem was of exactly the other type: we had as many as four openers playing in a single one-dayer: Sehwag, Ganguly, Tendulkar and Uthappa.

Dravid's selection problems will be two-fold: while he will be struggling to promote one of the middle-order bats to top of the order, there is a problem of plenty in the middle order. For Sachin Tendulkar, yesterday's god, the fall has been disgraceful: Cricinfo goes on to say that "Were Karthik to open, the only other sureties for the match are Jaffer and Dravid." It will be unfortunate if Yuvraj is dropped to accomodate Laxman, Sachin and Ganguly. With the media abuzz with the news of "5 bowlers likely for 1st test against Bangladesh" and "3 spinners may me fielded", Dravid's selection problems will only increase, if that indeed turns out to be the case.

In an Indian team, divided into camps, Dravid will have to play his cards very carefully. There ain't much to be gained by a victory, but anything less, and the call for a change in captaincy may only gain momentum. Yet again, in a cricket match involving India, it's the activities outside the cricket field that seem to be looking more important. Unfortunately for Indian cricket, the current state of affairs don't look bright, and the future bleak. I'm just hoping that Indian cricket doesn't go the way Indian hockey has...

Two flights of future take wing in Bangla

"Look at that, for flight. Beautifully done."

"He has great armspeed. Much like Warnie."

"Another Kumble in the making for India."

"Unless Bollywood snaps him up, he should complete 400 wickets."

"..and he is just 18."

"I would like to see him bowl in a test..that curve..will be a perfect trap."

He has bowled just 37 deliveries yet, and Piyush Chawla has already bowled over the television commentators. Me too. So far, it has been a sheer delight watching the innocent looking Chawla beguiling bastman after batsman, bowl after bowl. There were the classic looped up deliveries and lots and lots of googlies: Ashraful, the finest of the Bangla batters has already been bowled with a ripping googly and young Chawla sure does look promising. Bhajji better watch out.

Not doing a bad job is the rockstar turning his arm at the other end. He's 20 kilos too many, and he insists on wearing those brigh red-rimmed shades even as he bowls, yet one can't but like Romesh Powar - he looks to me a mathematical average of Arjuna Ranatunga and Mark Waugh, in style, weight and substance! Not afraid to toss the bowl up, he has taken a wicket, beating a batsman beautifully in flight but has also been hit over the ropes.

These two, together with Dinesh Karthik have it in them to become a part of the Indian one-day cricket's future scheme of things. Le't just hope that the rest provided to Messers Tendulkar, Ganguly and Harbhajan Singh will be extended further.

Round and round the Indian cricket bush

"More than enough has been said before a series between a side that effectively finished seventh in the World Cup and one that exited in the first round itself. It's now time for action."

- Siddharth Monga on Cricinfo

Imagine India had won the World Cup! Everyone would have been crying hoarse over this series against Bangladesh then, a less than mediocre series in the heat of May, and too soon after the triumph. Fortunately for BCCI, there ain't no such crisis! Though there is one of a different kind - and that one has stung harder. So, can the now officially declared divided Indian team take on Bangladesh? What can be India's gains from this series? Even if they do win, as they are once again expected to be, there can't be much reason for rejoicing. Indian cricket's only gains would be were a youngster or two to shine, and show some hope for the future. But even before the first ball is bowled in this India-Bangladesh series, the brightest hope we had has already been frittered away. Manoj Tewari, definitely the most exciting of the selections, has not even made it to the XII. It's back to square one, with the same old questions - will Sehwag open or not? Will Dinesh Mongia make it to the final XI? For god's sake, when are we going to move ahead of this mess.

And, who is going to be the first Vice-captain in the world to be appointed by the touring committee?! That's the only interesting question i am looking forward to seeing answered tomorrow morning. I hope Dravid-Shastri-Prasad-Robin don't chicken out.

Sehwag or Uthappa or Karthick ?

Sehwag / Uthappa / Karthick ?

Sehwag / Uthappa / Karthick ?

Sehwag / Uthappa / Karthick ?

Sehwag / Uthappa / Karthick ?

Sehwag / Uthappa / Karthick ?

There's just an outside chance that I'm getting perturbed over this unnecessarily, probably far more than Rahul Dravid or Greg Chappell or anyone else in the Indian camp. But that's just an outside chance. In all likelihood, this selection conundrum must be causing the Indian captain and coach sleepless nights, or worse.

Let's look at the likely candidates for each position.

1. Ganguly - confirmed

2. Sehwag / Uthappa

3. Dravid / Tendulkar / Sehwag / Uthappa

4. Dravid / Tendulkar / Yuvraj

5. Dravid / Yuvraj

6. Sehwag / Karthick

7. Dhoni

8. Ajit Agarkar

9. Harbhajan / Kumble

10. Zaheer Khan

11. Munaf Patel

Whatever permutation and combination (sensible ones) you do, one situation is very clear - India can play only play 2 of these 3 players against Bangladesh. Going by form, that shouldn't be a very tough decision - Sehwag should sit out - but Vengsarkar knows it, and we all know about Dravid's fondness for Sehwag. No, i'm not subscribing any ulterior motives on Dravid, just that the captain sees enough reason to continue with Virender Sehwag. That's where the twin selections on 17th March will pose a challenge - there will also be that second layer to the challenge, if Sehwag then who to drop - Uthappa or Karthick. Most of the world thinks that's easy - it has to be Uthappa, but I'd have gone with Dinesh Karthick. We need a couple of finishers out there and right now I can't see too many in the India XI.

I'm not very sure about the magnitude of Dravid's love for Irfan Pathan, though if past stories are to go by, Greg Chappell is. Again, on form Pathan doesn't seem to be a candidate and it's unlikely his case will be pushed. Maybe he may get a look in against Bermuda. But against Bangladesh, who are fresh from their upset win** over the Kiwis, the Wall may just want to play safe. And, yet again I agree.

**Bangladesh 230 for 8 (Iqbal 46, Omar 45, Mortaza 30*) beat New Zealand 226 (Oram 88, Mortaza 4-44, Razzaq 4-26) by 2 wickets

*******

Group B: Saturday, 17th March 2007: India vs Bangladesh, Queen's Park Oval, Trinidad

Catch it live in India on Sony Set Max (English), SAB (Hindi) and Doordarshan. Audio Commentary will be available on All India Radio.