IND vs BAN: What To Expect From Day 1 Of 1st Test?

Rohit Sharma, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Najmul Hossain Shanto [X]Rohit Sharma, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Najmul Hossain Shanto [X]

India is all set to take on Bangladesh in the first of the two-match Test series. The match will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, starting from 18th September at 9:30 PM IST. 

This series will be crucial for both teams as far as the WTC points table is concerned. The Indian team is currently positioned at the top of the table and will be looking to maintain their spot with wins in both games of the series. 

On the other hand, Bangladesh, who will be confident after their clean-sweep victory in Pakistan, will be looking to surprise the hosts. The Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side is in the fourth spot in the points table. They will be looking to climb up the ladder in the WTC points table and make a case for themselves to be in the final of this cycle.

Let us focus on the IND vs BAN, 1st Test. What can we expect from day one of the match?

Well, before going into further analysis, we must take a look at the pitch for this game. 

IND vs BAN, 1st Test - MA Chidambaram Stadium Pitch Report

The wicket at the MA Chidambaram Stadium used red soil for this game. This means that there will be more bounce on offer from the track. Red-soil tracks tend to wear out quickly; hence, we might see a bit of turn from Day one in this game. However, it will favour batting more on the first day, and we can expect runs, especially if India are batting. 

IND vs BAN, 1st Test - Toss Prediction

The first two days will be best for batting at the Chepauk. The pitch will wear out as the game goes by, and scoring runs on this track will gradually get difficult. With more bounce expected from this pitch, handling the spinners in the last two days will be challenging. So, the captain winning the toss will look to bat first. 

IND vs BAN 1st Test - How many runs will be scored on Day 1?

What happened in the last Test?

The last Test match played here was between India and England in 2021. During that match, 300 runs were scored, and 6 wickets fell on the first day.

What can we expect in this match?

If we look at the last four games at this venue, around 290 runs are scored on average, and five wickets fall on the first day. However, there have been rumours that this track will have more bounce than a general Chennai pitch. So, the projection for the first day could be - 

Predicted Score for First Day of IND vs BAN, 1st Test

Runs: 310-330
Wickets lost: 6-8

Conclusion

In all probabilities, the skipper who wins the toss will look to bat first. The team batting first must look to establish its authority in the game on the first day of the match. It will be one of the better days for batting, and the batters must make full use of it. If the team batting first can score around 330-350, losing around 5-7 wickets, it can dictate terms in the match. 

However, if Bangladesh bat first in the game, they might face a bit of difficulty with the extra bounce on the pitch. Thus, in this case, the prediction is that Bangladesh might get bundled around the 260-280 score, and India will have a bit of bat towards the end of the day.