IND vs BAN - Asia Cup T20 1st Match Betting Tips & Predictions

They have never won the Asia Cup and the Mashrafe Murtaza-led side believes they have a chance to lift the trophy this time around as they have been playing well at home recently. Last year in November, they clean-swept Zimbabwe in a 3-match ODI series and tied the 2-match T20 series 1-1. They tied another home T20 series 2-2 against them in January this year, though they know they could have done better. Bangladesh could draw a lot of confidence from their performance in the 2012 edition of the Asia Cup where they went on to beat both Sri Lanka and India before being defeated by Pakistan in the final.

The experienced Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and skipper Mortaza form the pillars of the team while young blood like Taskin Ahmed, Al-Amin Hossain and Nurul Hasan will bring more energy. The unavailability of their star batsman Tamim Iqbal would be a cause of worry for them. Imrul Kayes has been called in to replace the opener. Accumulating 312 runs in 12 innings, he was the second-highest run scorer in the Bangladesh Premier League 2015-16. Mustafizur Rahman, with 11 wickets in the first two games, was a thorn in India's flesh last year and his current form makes him a player worth betting on. Shakib-Al-Hasan with his tricky left-arm spin bowling can cause trouble for the Indian batsmen and can also be considered for putting money on. Bangladesh will have huge expectations from other players like Soumya Sarkar, Nasir Hossain and Sabbir Rahman.

Final Prediction

Bangladesh can no longer be deemed as minnows. Having undergone a dramatic transformation in the last few years, they have risen from being mere underdogs to a 'team to beat at home'. Though they might appear to be small on paper when compared to the big teams, their combination of experience and youth have pulled-off quite a few upsets of late, proving that they are indeed a hard nut to crack.
But do they have what it takes to challenge a team like India? Experts reckon not quite. With a more stable squad and with most of their players going through a good phase, Team India looks stronger ahead of their clash with Bangladesh. Though the home team is expected to give their opponents a tough competition on Wednesday, it is India who are the favorites to start off the tournament on a winning note.

Betting odds for India vs Bangladesh 1st T20:
India - 1.32 ; Bangladesh - 3.5