'Yeh IPL XI Hai, India Ki Team Nahi,': Basit Ali On India's Thumping Win Against Bangladesh
India beat Bangladesh by seven wickets [Source: PTI]
Team India put up a great show in the first T20I against Bangladesh on October 6 at the Shrimant Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Stadium. Their dominating performance caught the attention of cricket pundits, including former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali and he was quick to comment on India's incredible performance, even suggesting that it wasn’t just the Indian team that played, but a team full of IPL stars.
India Dominate In First T20I Against Bangladesh
Captain Suryakumar Yadav opted to bowl first. This decision worked out perfectly for India as their bowlers took control of the game. Arshdeep Singh (3/14) and Varun Chakravarthy (3/31) were standout performers, restricting Bangladesh to a low score of just 127 runs. Mayank Yadav, who was playing his debut match for India, impressed by everyone by taking his first international wicket.
In response, India side wasted no time. Hardik Pandya played an explosive knock of unbeaten 39 off 16 balls and helped India chase down the target in mere 11.5 overs.
Following the match, Basit Ali praised team India’s performance. He pointed out that several of India’s top players didn’t even play, yet the team still crushed Bangladesh. Missing from the squad were stars like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Axar Patel, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and Ravi Bishnoi. Despite this, India won with ease.
Ali commented that this wasn’t just the Indian national team playing but an IPL-level team, showing the depth of talent that India has developed through the Indian Premier League. He said,
“Yeh IPL eleven hai, India ki team nahi hai. There was no (Yashasvi) Jaiswal, no (Shubman) Gill, no Axar Patel, no Rishabh Pant, no (Shreyas) Iyer; (Ravi) Bishnoi did not play. And still they hammered them in just 11-something overs, finishing with a six from (Hardik) Pandya,” Basit Ali said.
A New Beginning For Indian Cricket?
Ali also mentioned that under the new leadership of Suryakumar Yadav, India seems to be just getting started. He even suggested that the match against Bangladesh looked like a warm-up game for bigger challenges ahead.
Team India will now face Bangladesh in the second T20I at the Arun Jaitely Stadium on Wednesday, October 9.