Building towards T20 World Cup

Bangladesh's batting struggles

Can India's top order flourish in Sylhet?

WPL stars and a problem of plenty

India potentially have a problem of plenty. Legspinner S Asha and spin-bowling allrounder S Sajana have earned maiden international call-ups on the back of their WPL performance after years of toil in the domestic circuit. Asha, 33, became the first Indian to take a five-for in the WPL and she finished as the second highest wicket-taker (12) of the season, playing a crucial part in Royal Challengers Bangalore's title-winning run. Sajana was one of Mumbai's breakout stars with her big-hitting ability. Left-arm spinner Radha Yadav has returned to India's squad after a year, following an impressive outing for Delhi Capitals, picking up ten wickets in nine games at an economy rate of 7.48. With Deepti Sharma and Shreyanka Patil being the first-choice spinners, how India squeeze in Asha, Radha and Saika Ishaque in the XI remains to be seen. To accommodate Sajana in the lower-middle order, India might even have to bench Amanjot Kaur.

Pitch and conditions in Sylhet

The last T20I series between the two sides was played entirely in Dhaka. India went in with three spinners and two seamers, with Shafali and Rodrigues chipping with more overs of spin as part-timers. Bangladesh played a spin-heavy attack with just one seamer in Marufa Akther. This time, all the five T20Is are in Sylhet, from 3.30pm local time. The venue recently hosted a men's three-T20I series between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in March, where the average score was 177 and four of the top five bowlers were fast bowlers. Some assistance for the seamers can be expected initially but both teams might still bank on spinners for wickets. India have played two T20Is against Bangladesh at this venue, and both times, they scored 150-plus and restricted the hosts to 100 or below.